Meet the Family
by Scotty1609
Summary: Dick Grayson is moving into Wayne Manor! But what chaos will erupt for Mr. Wayne and Mr. Pennyworth with five children? COMPLETE!  Now added preview to sequel- "Death of the Bat"
1. Meeting Bruce

**I own nothing except for Blaine, Jason, Terrence, and that *#$!^#$! April Johanna. (and some awesome alter-egos later on!)**

Dick shuffled his feet on the carpet of the gigantic manor as he bit his lower lip nervously, only making the small, black-haired, blue-eyed child ever more adorable.

Bruce Wayne was a very, _very _rich man, Dick decided as he looked around. The ceiling was so high, Dick supposed it touched the clouds outside. There was a gigantic chandelier hanging above the entryway, which opened from large double doors into a red-carpeted room that looked like it belonged in a castle. There were two staircases that opened around a big open space. Doors led off in every direction of the Manor, in the numerous hallways and rooms. There were framed portraits all around, with large vases sitting next to them on small, polished wood tables.

Gripping his Superman backpack by the straps, Dick pulled it up higher onto his tiny shoulders. He felt April put her hand on his shoulder, and he looked up at her. The evil, frightening woman looked even scarier with her bleach-blond hair up in a bun and her caked-on makeup. She looked like a clown back in the circus.

Trying not to giggle at the thought, Dick looked up at his agent. "Now, then, Richard," she spoke in her completely fake country-twang, "be very good for Mr. Wayne's visit today. Okay? He has some other foster-children already, so you should have fun on this visit. Okay?"

Nodding, the boy heaved his backpack up the stairs as he followed after the butler- a man by the name of Alfred Pennyworth. He was tall, very skinny, and had a gaunt, kindly, grandfatherly old face. He was balding, and most of his leftover hair seemed to gather together in a thick white mustache that curled up at the tips. He smiled when he saw Dick looking at him. Blushing, the boy averted his gaze.

They walked for what seemed like hours before coming upon a small parlor. It had intricately woven carpets with pale beige walls. There was a small fireplace and even more expensive-looking vases and portraits. There was a rather large one above the fireplace of a brown-haired, blue-eyed man standing with his arms around the shoulders of a black-haired, green-eyed woman. She wore a thin string of pearls around her neck. Their smiles seemed genuine enough. Of course, Dick supposed they should. Who _wouldn't _be happy with all of this money?

Alfred turned and bowed gently to a chair, which April sat down in. She crossed her legs, staring pointedly at Alfred as he spoke. "The Master is rounding up the young Masters and Mistresses. Please forgive him for the delay."

April waved her hand in the air. "Nonsense. I'm fine."

"Would you like any tea, Miss Johanna?"

April wrinkled her nose at the butler, who frowned at her rudeness. "No, no it's fine, darlin'. Just water, thanks."

Nodding, Alfred turned to Dick, who was still fingering his backpack. Alfred smiled at the picture of Superman. "Young Master Richard, you may set that down if it would please you. And please, have a seat. Would you like anything to drink?"

Dick's face lit up as he sat down, laying his pack on the couch next to him. "Do- do you have chocolate milk?"

April glared at him, and Dick shrunk back in his seat. Alfred nodded, grinning directly at April. "Yes, yes we have chocolate milk. Would you like some pastries with that-"

"No, no he wouldn't," April said. "Gotta keep healthy."

Alfred pursed his lips. "If I may say, Young Master Richard looks rather thin." He turned back to the boy. "I have some freshly-made sweet rolls, if you would like some, Young Master Richard."

Dick shook his head, but his stomach rumbled loudly. April rolled her eyes, and Alfred scowled at her before having a mood-swing and grinning at Dick. "I think I shall bring two for the Young Master."

He left, leaving April and Dick alone. The agent turned to Dick, her face red. "You'd best behave for Mr. Wayne, Richard Grayson, or it's back to Juvie with you... You hear me?"

His face pale, Dick nodded quickly. _Anything but the jail_, the boy thought with a shudder. After he had left the circus, April had been too lazy to find him a foster home, and there was no space in any of the Gothom orphanages, so Dick had been sent to Juvie to spend the night in a jail cell. Three days later, he had been transported to a 'special facility' for traumatized children. It was a miniature Arkham Asylum, is what it was.

There came the sound of giggling and laughter from the hallway, and into the room skipped two girls. One was very pale, with dark, obsidian eyes and hair that was in a braid that went all the way down her back. It was a pale blond that clashed with her bright yellow sundress and bright red bow. She looked to be about nine or ten. The other girl was older, maybe fourteen, and had fiery red hair and deep brown eyes. She looked very nice in her pink and purple dress. Her hair was down, and there was a lily behind her ear.

When the two girls saw Dick, they had very different reactions. The red-head smiled broadly and imedeatly jumped forward, giving him a hug and saying, "Hi! My name's Barbara! This is Blaine."

She turned, showing the blond girl that was hiding shyly behind her back. Rolling her eyes, Barbara shoved Blaine in front of her gently. Blaine flushed and stuck out her hand. After an awkward moment, Dick shook it. Blaine blushed even pinker and dashed back behind Barbara. Barbara was about to speak, but just then, two boys ran into the room.

One was taller and obviously older, maybe sixteen, and had cropped brown hair and olive skin. His eyes were a brilliant sky blue, and he was rather built. He wore a suit shirt and brown slacks with Nike tennis shoes. The other boy was African-American had had a shaved head, with some of those cool designs written into the thin layer of black curls on the side of his head. He too wore slacks, only his were gray, and tennis shoes with a green suit shirt. He looked to be about eleven or twelve.

The sixteen-year-old hung back in the doorway when he saw Dick, smiling gently, but acting slightly shy. The other boy was eager, like Barbara, and ran up and held his fist out to Dick. Dick looked at him, confused. The boy's smile fell. "You've _never _seen a fist-bump?"

Dick shook his head, and the boy's jaw dropped. He slammed it shut and smiled. "I guess I'll just have to teach you, then!" And he did. Dick was smiling by the time they finished. The boy in front of him suddenly turned reddish-brown. "Oh! Right, my name is Terrence."

The boy in the back inclined his head and waved gently. "Jason."

"What's your name?" Blaine asked. She seemed to have lost most of her shyness.

"His name is Richard Grayson," April said, leaning back and frowning when she saw how muddy the boys' shoes were. Dick only then noticed the mud on the hems of the girls' dresses, too.

Jason frowned at Dick. "Can you speak?"

Dick nodded his head. "Yeah, I can."

"_Yes_, Richard. Use proper English!" April snapped.

Dick hung his head.

Just then, there came a deep voice. "Hello, Richard."

Dick looked up and his eyes widened.

The man was tall and very well built with shoulders broad as the sea. His eyes were as blue as it, and seemed to have a curious depth to them. His hair was jet-black, just like Dick's, and he wore a loose suit jacket and slacks. Dick hid a grin when he saw that the man's shoes had mud on them. So did the hem of his pants.

Dick decided that he liked Bruce Wayne just then, just because he wasn't afraid to get dirty.

Bruce came forward and got down on one knee to look Dick in the eye. He held out his hand. "My name is Bruce Wayne."

His hand was rough and calloused, and it nearly swallowed Dick's hand whole.

"Hi," Dick said softly with an edge of nerves in his voice.

April frowned and snapped, "Speak up, Richard!"

Dick jumped at the piercing voice. "Hi!" he nearly shouted.

Bruce scowled at April, and Dick decided that he liked him even more.

Alfred then came in with a platter of steaming buns. On another tray he carried, there was a glass of water (with ice and lemon) and a tall pink glass of chocolate milk. There was a swirly straw in it, which made Dick smile. _Just like how Mommy did it!_

The other children crowded around the tray of rolls, but Alfred slapped all of their hands gently. "Wait for our guests first, children. Have I taught you nothing?"

Looking sheepish, the children stood back. Dick politely took one small roll and nibbled on the edge. He detected a hint of cinnamon in it...

Alfred looked at the children and sighed, his eyes looking to the ceiling. "Now you may."

The children attacked. Jason grinned as he inhaled his roll, and Barbara made a sultry sigh in her throat. Blaine smiled up at Bruce, and he picked her up in his arms, setting her on his lap as he sat across from April. Terrence yelped. "Hot! Hot!"

Blaine rolled her eyes. "Well yeah, genius. They just came out of the oven!"

"How do _you _know?" Jason inquired.

Blaine rolled her eyes again. "Well, for one, their steaming."

Barbara looked at Dick as she sat at Bruce's feet. "Alfred makes the _best _rolls-"

"-And cookies-"

"-And cakes-"

"-And candies!"

Alfred grinned and nodded to Bruce, who nodded back knowingly. Alfred walked off to do whatever it was he needed to do, and Bruce looked April square in the eye. "I've done this before, Miss Johanna. May I ask you a question?"

Cocking an eyebrow, April replied, "What?"

"When can we make it official?"

April looked flustered. "I- I'm sorry?"

"When can Dick come live with us?"

April looked at Dick, then back to Bruce, then back to Dick. "I- I suppose... whenever. The paperwork is all filed out, and the judge already deemed you a worthy guardian, and since you already have four foster-children, I- I suppose-"

"Excellent," Bruce said, standing and handing Blaine to Jason. "Then you may leave, if you wish."

April looked _extremely _flustered. "I'm sorry?"

Bruce smiled and took her elbow, leading her to the door. All of the children- and Dick, holding his pack- followed. "I insist. You must be very busy."

"But I-"

"Have a nice day, Miss Johanna!"

And he shut the door in her face.

He looked back at Dick with a satisfied grin. "She's rude to you."

Dick frowned. "How-"

Bruce pointed to the cameras around the room.

"Oh."

Bruce stood back and inspected Dick. "Now, then, Richard-"

"Dick, please."

Bruce nodded. "Dick, then. Do you not have anything else?"

Dick looked down at the Superman and shrugged. "No. The police took most of my stuff as evidence."

Bruce scowled firmly. His scowl scared Dick. He shivered, and Bruce's face melted back into his smile. "I'm sorry." He rubbed his hands together. "Now, then, since you have no clothes, we should take you shopping."

Blaine and Barbara squealed, and Jason rolled his eyes. "Can I stay here?"

"No."

Jason put his hands out and whined. "But, Bruce-"

"No 'buts', Jason. I'm going to need your help with the girls."

The girls ignored the almost-insult and skipped off to their rooms to change out of their muddy clothes. "Go change," Bruce said to Terrence and Jason. Sighing heavily, Jason followed his little 'brother' up the stairs.

Bruce looked again down to Dick. "So, Dick, do you know what size you are?"

Dick shrugged. "My mo-" He cringed. "S-someone always bought my clothes for me..."

Seeing the boy's sudden change in moods, Bruce quickly averted the conversation. "So, Superman..." He lifted the backpack from Dick's grasp. "You like him?"

Dick nodded, smiling weakly. "He's my favorite superhero."

Bruce frowned, to Dick's dismay. "D-Did I say something wrong-"

"Oh, no, no, no, no, no," Bruce replied quickly, handing the backpack back to the boy. "It's just, Batman is _my _favorite superhero." With that, he crossed the room and rung a buzzer. Leaning into it, he said, "Alfred, could you please ready the car? We're going shopping."

**1. Yes, I know that Barbara Gordon is not really Bruce's foster-daughter, but I wanted to do it like that, SO DEAL WITH IT!**

**Review= Chapter Two (Shopping)**


	2. Shopping

**I'M BAAAAACK!**

**Okay, dis is a bonding fic more than anything, and to answer a Q i got, the 'conflict' will start nxt chapter! SO HANG ON!**

**Again, the only peoples i own are Terrence, Blaine, and Jason.**

**OH! BTW! Nxt chapter also will hold Background info about the above characters! (And Barbara- my own version of her past)**

Dick looked around uneasily. Blaine and Barbara were being chased all around the store by Jason, who was trying _desperately _to get them to give him back his Aviators and Fedora. Both girls just giggled and ran off, knocking over a shoe display. Bruce and Alfred blushed at the staff who cleaned up after and scowled at the girls and boy.

Terrence was actually behaving himself. The eleven-year-old was helping Dick pick out some neat tee-shirts and pants- some nice Levi's, a shirt with Superman on it, a G.I. Joe shirt, and a couple of white and blue dress shirts. Dick went to go change, and Jason helped him button up the dress shirts, as Dick had never worn one before. Terrence smiled at the eight-year-old in the mirror. "Well, Dick? Wadda'ya think?"

Dick pulled at the collar of the light blue dress shirt. "It's kinda itchy..."

Terrence laughed and pulled Dick out of the dressing room.

Bruce held a chuckle and Alfred frowned sincerely at his muffled snort. Dick's pants reached about five inches past his ankles, but fit snuggly on his hips. The shirt was a nice fit, but the tie was too long and went far past the boy's belt, which was wrapped around him twice.

Alfred patted Terrence on the head. "Young Master Terrence, would you see to it that Mistresses Blaine and Barbara are caught before they destruct the store further?"

Terrence, realizing that he wasn't needed, left, grumbling. Bruce smiled after the young boy, then turned to the even younger one. Dick looked so adorable in the too-big clothes that Bruce let out a low chuckle. Dick blushed and looked down at the carpet, his hands behind his back. Bruce ruffled the boy's hair.

Dick jumped back and looked angrily at Bruce, who was taken aback. Only Dick's father had ever ruffled his hair. "D-Don't do that..." Dick said softly. "P-Please..."

Bruce nodded knowingly. "I'm sorry, Dick." He looked over the boy's attire once more, smiling and rubbing his chin. "I think we can fix this easily..."

There came a loud _CRASH!_ and Alfred put his head in his gloved hand. Bruce sniggered when the old man rushed off, his voice raised over the dim, "MISS BLAINE AND MISS BARBARA!"

Jason appeared, red-faced and out of breath. He glared at his foster-father, a look that said 'I-am-so-ticked-at-you-right-now-so-don't-even-think-about-laughing.' Bruce held in a chuckle at Jason's wrinkled ACDC shirt and his bangs, which were splayed and frizzy. Bruce patted down the light brown hair and gestured to Dick. "Think you can help us?"

Jason couldn't help but smile, amused at Dick's appearel. "Yeah. I can do some good..."

**Fifteen Minutes Later...**

Dick looked into the mirror, smiling. From the neck, down, with his nice criss-crossed purple tie, white dress shirt, black suit jacket, gray slacks (that fit _almost _perfectly, just barely coming under his heels), and his brown dress-shoes, Dick looked very professional. But his messy black hair ruined the professional appearance with an angelic child innocence. Jason patted the boy's shoulder. "Like it?"

Dick nodded, and Jason laughed. Then, his face grew very serious. "I actually think it's missing something..."

Dick frowned. What could he possibly be missing?

From behind his back, Jason produced a very small gray, pin-striped fedora with a deep black ribbon coming around the base. Dick grinned as it fell over his eyes. Jason laughed again, a not-too-deep laugh that was filled with happiness and made Dick feel warm and fuzzy inside, like his head was full of Sprite. "You'll grow into it!" Jason said, bending the hat backwards on Dick's head.

Bruce appeared, holding Blaine under one arm and Barbara by the scruff of her black leather jacket. "Ready?" he asked, grunting as Blaine accidentally hit his stomach. Terrence appeared behind Bruce, and Alfred came with a puff of smoke in front of Dick. The boy jumped and squeaked, running behind Jason. Alfred frowned. "I am sorry to have frightened you, Young Master Dick."

Dick shook his head. "N-no, that's okay... You just- came out of... _no_where."

Bruce smiled as he put Blaine down next to him. Terrence grabbed a firm hold on her hand as Bruce spoke to Dick. "Yeah, Alfred tends to do that a lot."

Alfred grunted, drawing eyes all around the store, as he tried to pick up the massive pile of clothes. Bruce and Jason leaped in to help, and Barbara came over to Dick, putting her hand in his. With wide, blue eyes, the boy looked up at her. "Did you have fun, Dick?"

Dick wrinkled his nose, and Barbara laughed. "Yeah- Jason doesn't care for shopping, either, but he has a great sense of fashion!"

Jason blushed at this statement.

The 'family' checked out, getting six tee-shirts, two sweaters, three hoodies, a leather jacket, three suit jackets, five dress shirts, three pairs of slacks, two pairs of shorts, and five pairs of jeans for Dick (not including the brand-new tennis shoes and two pairs of dress shoes). Barbara ended up getting a new pair of earrings, and Blaine quickly sneaked in a butterfly hair-clip at the last second. Jason bought his own pair of new sunglasses, and Alfred came upon a nice pair of dress shoes for Terrence (navy blue with black and white accents).

Leaving the store, Bruce and Alfred were weighed down by colorful bags.

Dick lifted his backpack higher onto his shoulders, and Blaine grabbed his hand. "Dickie, look!" She pointed to a merry-go-round in the large mall. Looking at Bruce with puppy-dog eyes, she pouted. "Pwease? Fowr Dick?"

Rolling his eyes, Bruce somehow managed to dig into his pocket and hand Blaine a five-dollar bill. Squealing with delight, Blaine dragged Dick and Barbara off onto the machine. Terrence and Jason were too 'cool' for the merry-go-round, so, instead, held the bags while Bruce and Alfred took a break.

The lights lit up Dick's face as he sat on the horse's back. Barbara sat behind him, her arms wrapped innocently around his waist as she pointed out the paintings of different circus animals all around the top of the carnival-like ride. Dick saw a clown holding a balloon animal, a couple of elephants, a gaggle of children around a cotton-candy vendor, and three acro-

He paled.

Suddenly, the boy's breath grew heavy in his throat. He swallowed and held at his chest, trying to force some air down. His lungs began to burn as he realized that they were already full of air. He panted and half-gasped, half-choked on air as he clutched at the metal rod in front of him, squeezing his eyes shut. Tears still managed to flow through.

At first, Barbara was too enticed with watching Blaine giggle and squeal at the lights that she didn't notice the boy in front of her hyperventilating. Then, she heard his choked gasp. Looking down, she saw tears falling down his cheeks and his mouth open in a pained intake of air. Her eyes grew wide, and she practically shrieked at the 'conductor', "Stop! Stop! Stop the thing, dang it! Stop it!"

The man, a kindly, fat man in pin-striped pants, saw her face as she came around. He also saw the boy in front of her, his face wet and his mouth open in a long 'O'. He pushed the emergency 'STOP' button, and the machine quickly slowed to a stop.

Bruce and Alfred ran around the machine to Barbara, who was now cradling Dick in her arms as he still gasped for air.

Bruce lifted the boy off the horse by his biceps and sat him down on the dirty, dusty floor (much to Alfred's later dismay). He forced the boy's head down between his knees and said softly, in a soothing voice, "Take a deep breath in, Dick... Good, now out... In... Out... Just relax, okay? You're okay... You're okay..."

Dozens and dozens of people had gathered by now, crowding around the billionaire, trying to get a glimpse of the boy he was now lifting into his arms. Several security guards rushed forward and tried to force the crowd back. A nice, red-bearded one approached Bruce and Dick, who had caught his breath, but was still dripping with tears.

The man pulled a lollipop from his shirt pocket and unwrapped it, handing it to Dick. The boy took it, his tiny hand shaking, and said softly, in an innocent, angelic voice, "Thank you..."

The man nodded. "You're welcome, sport." He looked at Bruce. "Mr. Wayne, can I assume that this is your new ward, Richard Grayson?"

Bruce nodded and shifted Dick onto his hip as he held a hand out for the guard to shake. "You can assume correctly."

The man tipped his hat. "My name's Rudolph McKreary. You can call me Rudy." He looked over Bruce's shoulder at Alfred and Jason, who now held the bags, and Terrence who held Blaine. Barbara was gently approaching Dick and Bruce. She clasped the boy's hand, but he pulled away, putting his face into Bruce's shoulder, the lollipop falling from his hand and cracking on the floor.

Bruce opened his mouth to say sorry, but Rudolph shook his head. "'Sall right, Mr. Wayne. I'll get someone to clean it up later. Now," he turned, pulling on his belt as he staggered off, "if you could follow me, I can get ya'll outta here in a jiffy."

Bruce followed without anymore say, the children and Alfred behind him, the crowd (now including camera-men and 'reporters') trying to follow but being blocked by a human wall.

The small procession was led out of a back-door and out into the parking lot on the opposite side of where they were parked. Rudolph inclined his hat to Bruce. "Mr. Wayne." He bowed his head to Alfred. "Mr. Pennyworth."

Alfred seemed to like the fact that the man knew his name, too. He nodded curtly, and the man left. Jason looked at Dick, who was drying his eyes on Bruce's shirt. Bruce patted the boy's back gently as the group walked. Barbara and Blaine ended up holding hands and skipping, and Terrence was galloping after them. Jason rolled his eyes at their antics, but secretly wished to join them.

Dick sniffled, drawing Bruce and Jason's attention. He whimpered as he looked at Bruce. "I-I'm sorry, Mr. Wayne, I just..."

Bruce shushed the child. "Nonsense, Dick. It's okay... I'm sorry about... what upset you-"

"The pictures," the boy whimpered.

Bruce cocked an eyebrow, then realized what Dick was speaking of. Bruce himself, and Barbara and Jason, had been there the night of the 'incident'. (The murder, is more like it.) Blaine had been at a friend's house for a sleep-over, and Terrence at home with a high fever, Alfred tending to him. Barbara, thank _God_, had been buying cotton candy when it happened, but Jason had seen the whole incident, which is likely why he seemed to worried for Dick, though he hardly knew the boy. If it had scared Jason, a 16-year-old, as badly as it had, then the actual son of the victims, who _witnessed _first-hand, so _close_ to the site, should be even _more _frightened.

Dick coughed, clearing bile from his throat, as he looked at Bruce. "I-I can w-w-walk now..."

Bruce looked at him intently. "Are you sure?"

Dick nodded, and Bruce put him down. Dick stayed still for a moment, looking at the ground, blinking back more tears. After taking in a shaky breath, he took his backpack from Alfred (against the man's objections, of course) and hiked it up on his shoulders.

It made him feel safe.

It made him feel... secure.

It had been his 8th birthday present from his mom and dad. It almost felt like they were wrapping their arms around his chest as he pulled the straps forward. He could feel his mother's warm breath on his neck as she hugged him goodnight. He could smell his father's hair as he sat on the man's shoulders to see above the backstage crowd...

Dick looked up at Jason, who had both hands in his pockets. Bruce and Alfred had walked on a bit more, chasing after the girls and Terrence.

But Jason had hung back.

He didn't take a step near or away from Dick.

He just let him be.

After a moment's silence, Dick stepped forward and wrapped his hand around Jason's wrist. After clearing himself of the initial shock, Jason smiled warmly and let the boy fiddle with his long, large fingers. Dick's hand wrapped around his three middle fingers, but no further.

He wouldn't have ever drempt of pushing the boy into walking, or talking for that matter.

He understood.

He understood _completely_.

They reached the car. Everyone else was inside, but Dick stayed put for a moment as Jason opened the door. "Jason," he said quickly just as the older boy ducked his head in. Jason turned, smirking his signature smile at the boy.

"Yeah, Dick?"

Dick shuffled his feet. "T-Thanks..."

Smiling, Jason said, "Your welcome."

As he helped the boy into the car, Jason didn't even have to ask what he received the thanks from.

Sometimes, silence was golden.

**OKAY! Dat was fun.**

**I actually haven't written CH 3, so no teasers here!**

**Sowwy...**

**And YES, I have plans for MANY chapters**


	3. Background Check

**I'm BAAAAAAAACCCCCCCCKKKKKKKK!1**

**OTAY! As stupid as this is, I dont want to get sued, SSSSSSSSOOOOOOO: I own nothing here except for Jason Holmes, Terrence Prince, and Blaine McGuyver (oh, and also the 'parents' of these three!)**

**NOOOOOOOOOOOW...**

**ENJOY!**

**P.S. (These are all flashbacks, except for the very last one!)**

**Jason Holmes:**

**Sixteen**

**Status: orphan**

The five-year-old boy in the backseat of the Tarus Ford was kicking his feet, hitting his father's seat. His mother was driving, her long red hair pulled back so that she could see easier. The boy's father was trying to get him to stop kicking. "Jason!" he exclaimed. "Jason! Ja- JASON!"

Jason stopped at how terrifying his father's voice was. The little boy's eyes filled with tears as he looked up at his dad. The man looked at his son, a version of himself at that age. "Jason... please just stop kicking my seat, okay?"

The boy nodded his head, sniffling.

Derrik nodded and turned back around. He sighed and took his wife's hand. "Miranda?"

"Hm?" she asked, trying to look at the road map and the actually road at the same time.

Derrik took the paper from her and spread it out on his lap. "Okay... You're gonna take a left on Main, then go on until we hit Stewart... Right on Stewart, and then turn onto I-38..."

Miranda nodded. Then, she felt pressure on her seat. She groaned. "Jason!"

The boy giggled, and his father turned around, a stern eye on the boy. "Jason Holmes," he growled, "you will stop _this instant_. Do you hear me?"

Jason stuck out his lower lip. "Y-y-yes, D-daddy..."

Derrik moaned as he turned to his wife. "_Why _must he have such a cute face?"

Miranda giggled and turned down onto Main. "Maybe because I'm his mother."

Derrik made a face. "Arf, arf, arf," he said in a goofy voice. Miranda laughed again, and Jason joined her.

"Mommy?" came Jason's high-pitched, childish voice. Miranda looked up in the rear-view mirror.

"Yes, pumpkin?"

"Can you tuwn on da wadio?"

Smiling, Miranda turned on Kids' Bop. Derrik groaned as Jason clapped and giggled. Derrik rolled his eyes towards his wife, who was trying to hide a smirk. "Mer?"

"Yeeees?"

"Do you _want _my ears to start bleeding?"

Miranda laughed again, her merry voice lifting both boys' souls. It was a bubbly laugh that filled the air with joy and merriness.

There came several horns, and Derrik looked at the rear-view, confused. "Who are they honking at-"

"DERRIK!" Miranda screamed, putting her hand over his chest.

CRASH!

**Five hours later...**

Jason was crying heavily, his gigantic tears too large for such a small boy.

They had said the man driving the truck was 'intoxicated', whatever that meant.

All Jason knew was that his Mommy and Daddy weren't going to hug him again...

A woman with a fake smile and a pencil skirt so tight it looked as if would bust at the seams crouched down in front of Jason, taking his hands in hers. He pulled away quickly, pulling his knees to his chest. "Jason?" the lady said kindly. "Jason, can you come with me, please?"

It took several minutes of coaxing, but, finally, Jason nodded and took the woman's hand.

**Eight years later...**

After years and years and _years _of jumping from Juvi to foster home to orphanage to foster home to Juvi and back, Jason, thirteen now, held his suitcase in one hand and his backpack in the other. He gulped at how large the Manor was. It was intimidating.

A large, strong hand shocked the boy from his stupor. He turned and looked up into the face of Bruce Wayne. The billionare smiled at Jason and said, "Hello, Jason. My name is Bruce Wayne. I hope you'll settle in nicely."

Jason gaped for a moment at how large the man seemed, compared to his scrawny, malnourished form. His stomach growled loudly, and Bruce laughed, taking the suitcase from him. "C'mon, kid. Let's get you settled."

**Barbara Gordon:**

**Fourteen**

**Status: orphan**

Barbara's shoulders shook as she stood before her father's grave. The tombstone said in curvy, thick letters: "Commissioner Gordon, beloved Father, honorable soldier of the Law."

Barbara didn't understand. She was ten! Why did _she _have to go through this? Why _her_? After her mother had left her, a six-month old baby, on the doorstep of her father, who had been already thirty at that time, she had never heard from the woman again. Now, she was an orphan. It was news that her mother had O.D.'d when Barbara was four. Her father had been distraught- he had loved Nancy, even if she had been an addict. It hadn't started that way...

Yes, Barbara was a crack-baby.

She was teased because of it.

She _hated _being her.

Her father had died a few days before, being shot and sent into a coma for three months. The man who had shot him was never brought to justice. He had been found, hanging from the roof of his apartment complex.

Suicide.

Not justice.

Barbara wiped tears and snot from her face. _Gross_. She smiled softly at a memory...

_She had been turning six that day. Her father was singing to her as he lit the candles on the pink-frosted cake._

"_...TOOOOOOOOO YOU!"_

_He kissed her forehead. "Okay, Barb! Blow out the candles..."_

_Just then, the girl felt a sneeze coming on._

"_A-AAAAACHOOOOO!"_

_Gordon wrinkled his nose. "Uh... Ice-cream, anyone?"_

Barbara giggled softly. She had gotten strawberry ice-cream, and her father had gotten vanilla. Hers was a cone, his was a cup...

Why did that memory stick out so broadly in her mind?

A tall man in a suit stepped up beside her, squinting in the sunlight. "Barbara Gordon?"

Not being able to speak, Barbara nodded.

The man smiled. "My name is Bruce Wayne."

Barbara turned at this. "W-Wayne? Like, the _billionare _Wayne?"

Chuckling, Bruce nodded. "Yes." He pulled a boy out from behind him. He looked only about thirteen. He had short, cropped brown hair and bright blue eyes. He shyed away from Barbara at first, but she smiled at him and extended her hand. "Hello," she said softly.

He blushed and shook her hand briskly. "Hi."

Bruce chuckled. "This is my son-"

"_Foster _son," the boy corrected.

Bruce tried to hide his hurt, but Barbara saw it. She scowled at the boy.

"My _foster _son, Jason Holmes."

Barbara nodded. "Barbara Gordon."

"So I've heard."

Bruce lightly slapped the back of Jason's head. "_Ow_!"

Bruce rolled his eyes, then turned back to Barbara. "Barbara, would you like to be my foster daughter?"

**Terrence Prince:**

**Twelve**

**Status: abandoned**

The woman was dark-skinned and wore a shawl that covered her from her shoulders to the top of her head, covering her dreadlocks. The baby boy in her arms squealed and moved around as he cried. The rain slowly patted on the boy's head.

The woman stiffled a cry. "Terry... Oh, son, I love you... I wan' ya so badly, baby..." She rounded a corner, the large house just in her sight. She looked back down at the five-month-old infant, seeing his greenish-brown eyes open and looking at her as he cried. "Oh, Terrence... Yer daddy can'a hold a job... I a can'a 'ave a baby, bein' a street-walka'... Oh, Terry..." She passed under a bridge and heard the sound of a train passing over. She cringed, and the baby wailed. "Terry, Terry, shush now, baby... be a' quiet now, baby..."

She reached the orphanage and stiffled another weep. She set the baby down under the patio roofing and laid a notecard on his chest. It read, _Terrence Prince_, in chicken-scratch. "My little Prince..." she whispered and walked away slowly, the baby's cries calling to her.

But she couldn't go back.

She couldn't care for a child.

It wasn't even Stephen's! And if he knew, he would...

No.

No, she wouldn't think of that.

So, with that as her last thought, the woman blew a kiss at the baby boy and ran off in the downpour.

**Ten Years Later...**

Mrs. Patrick straightened Terrence's shirt and snapped at him to tuck it in. The boy did. "Now then, Terry-"

"It's _Terrence_," the boy growled.

Mrs. Patrick back-handed him, leaving a bright red mark on the soft chocolate skin of the boy's face. "Shut up, wretch. You best be glad I've kept you at this god-forsaken place all these years and not dropped you off at the Juvenile Detention Center!"

She looked up, brushing her skirts. The door chime rang as the door opened. "Now, boy," she said the word with distain, "go off and get Mr. Wayne, and _be polite, _or no supper for the next week!"

Terrence ran off, his bare feet pounding on the hard wood. A splinter shoved its way up into his big toe, and he cried out.

Mr. Wayne saw this and grabbed the boy's arms. "Kiddo, you alright?"

Terrence sniffled. "S-s-s-splin-splin-t-t-t-"

"Splinter?"

Terrence nodded, his eyes tearful.

Mr. Wayne cradled the boy in his arms and sat down on a free chair among the dirty, hospital-like beds. He looked over to the door, and Terrence just noticed the presence of three other people. A girl with bright red hair and deep brown eyes, a boy with brown hair and blue eyes, and a very tall, very old-looking man dressed in a suit. "Jason," Mr. Wayne said, "hand me your Swiss."

The boy dug into his jeans pocket and withdrew a pocket knife. Mr. Wayne opened it up to show some tweezers. Terrence tried to pull away, put Mr. Wayne just pulled the boy back onto his lap. "One moment, son, this won't hurt."

Terrence bit his lip. A sudden sharp pain in his bare toe made him squeak. Mr. Wayne pulled back, smiling. There was a dark sliver of wood in the tweezers. "There. See?" He showed it to the boy, who inspected it with curiosity.

"It's tiny."

Mr. Wayne let out a hearty laugh. "Yes, yes the smallest things seem to hurt the most, don't they?"

Nodding, Terrence slid off the man's lap. Mr. Wayne lightly scolded him, "Now, go put on some shoes."

Terrence looked down at his bare feet and began to twiddle his fingers, moving his toes up and down. "I don't- I mean I- uh..."

"TERRENCE!" came the sharp, shrill voice of a middle-aged woman. Sure enough, a balding, 40 or 50-year-old woman shuffled into the room in large skirts and a blouse. She grabbed Terrence's arm in a vice-grip. She swore at him and slapped his cheek. The four guests winced. "Terrence, you wretch! I told you to _help_ Mr. Wayne, not _plague _him!" She scowled and raised her hand to slap the boy again, but just as she brought it down, a large, strong hand grabbed her wrist. With fearful, yet furious, eyes, the woman looked up.

"Terrence is coming with me," Growled Mr. Wayne.

He picked up the boy and, just with that, no papers or anything, left the orphanage with Terrence, Barbara, Jason, and Alfred. None of them looked back.

**Blaine McGuyver:**

**Ten**

**Status: fostered**

The blonde girl, only eight and a half at the time, cried out in pain as her father slammed the broad piece of wood into her side. Rain poured down her face, washing away the blood in her light hair and making it stain her white shirt and thin, worn-out jeans. The man, drunken and high on drugs, brought the wood down on her back, knocking the girl to the other side of the alleyway. Her shirt was half-off, and when the wood hit her, it scraped up her skin.

"Now!" her father shouted at her (though no one else in Gothom would be able to hear over the dim) "are you gonna let me play with you or what?"

Blaine bit her lip and wept as her father tried to lift off her shirt. "No!" she screamed. "No, no, no! P-p-please! D-dad!"

The man kissed her right next to her lips, and Blaine screamed, just trying to get him off of her.

He withdrew and slammed the wood into her side again. The girl cried out and pulled her shirt down over the wound, trying to staunch the blood. Sadly, she had had much practice in this art. "SHUT UP!" her father screamed at her.

And he pinned her to the wall, fighting to take her shirt off. "SOMEONE!" the girl screamed, rain filling her mouth as she coughed, kicking and flailing her arms. "SOMEONE! HELP! HELP! HE-"

Her father's hand cut off her air supply. "I _told _you to _shut up_."

She landed a good punch on his jaw, and he dropped her. Blaine clutched her throat, gasping for air as she stood and stumbled off, away from her tormentor.

But the man recovered quickly and chased her down the street. He grabbed her by her waist and started dragging her back to the normal hide-out. "NO!" she screamed, still choking on rainwater. "NO! HELP! HELP! AUGH!" She screamed in pain as the man spanked her with the soggy piece of plywood. Her pants ripped right along the seat. But it wasn't like they were her only pair. Oh yeah! They _were_!

Blaine _seriously _had other things to think about.

She was dragged out behind the dumpster, screaming. Soon, as her father managed to pull her shirt half-way off, her voice went dead. She was about to black out, from weariness and pain and blood loss.

But then, her _father _screamed.

Blaine blinked harshly and saw an odd piece of metal hooking her father's shirt to the brick alleyway.

Two strong, black-covered arms picked her up. Blaine didn't even gasp when she saw her savior's frightening mask of black. "I'm taking you somewhere safe," he said in a scratchy voice.

She was too weak to even nod, so Blaine just blinked before black consumed her.

**Seven Hours Later...**

Her eyes snapped open, and she saw a bright light weaving in from some fancy lace curtains. A man in a suit with a bushy white mustache was opening the blinds. "Forgive me, young Miss," he said, not even turning around, "but I believe a good meal would do you justice."

Blaine nodded. "Wh-where am I?"

The man turned. "A safe place," was all he said.

Blaine then noticed that she was wearing a soft pink cotton nightgown. She looked up at the man fearfully. "Did-did you-"

"No!" he said loudly. "Oh, heavens no!"

She frowned. "Then... who?"

Suddenly, a girl with bright red hair, with streaks of orange in it, and deep, caring brown eyes ran into the gigantic room and somehow managed to jump from the double oak doors and into the bed. Blaine squealed and pulled her knees up to her chest, holding onto her wrists. The girl smiled at her. "I hope you don't mind. You were half-awake, so I helped you bathe. I put you into one of my _favorite _nightgowns after you dried off- you were _fully _asleep by then."

Blaine nodded slowly. "Who- who are you?"

The girl grinned ear-to-ear and hugged Blaine, much to the younger girl's surprise. "Barbara Gordon! And _you _are my new sister!"

**Unknown:**

**Unknown**

**Status: Murderer**

The man's face was englufed in shadows. His 'minions' looked at eachother warily. Sure, they were the broad-shouldered strongmen of the family, but _he _was the boss- and the knife-thrower.

His feet were perched on the desk, and his ragged suit was visible, but the lights cut off any views of above his Adam's apple. He growled and spoke in his eerie voice, "_Where is he_?"

The men shuffled their feet, nodding to eachother. Finally, the one on the right gulped and said. "We- we down't know, bowss." He spoke in a 'Jewrsey' voice.

The man slammed his hand down on the table. "WHY NOT?"

Both men flinched. "Well, we uh-" the second man spoke, but he was cut off- literally- by a knife that lodged itself deep in his jugular vein. Blood squirted all over his partner and the desk, and the goon fell, choking as he bled out. After several minutes of silence, the man's movements came to a stop. He twitched lightly in the large pool of crimson.

The other man's eyes slowly looked up to the shaded figure.

"_Find _him. NOW!"

Without any other words, the man ran from the room. The shaded figure shouted back, "AND FIND SOMEONE TO CLEAN UP THIS MESS!"

He leaned back in his leather chair with a small _creak_. Looking over at the wall, the man saw a picture of a circus. It announced at the bottom with three faces, _"The Flying-" _but the rest was cut off. Two knives, covered in dripping red, were over the face of the red-headed woman and black-haired man, sticking deep into the wood wall.

The last picture was of a small boy with bright blue eyes. His smile was real and genuine.

The shadowed man chuckled with a malicious tone. Just then, a house-keeper burst into the room. Her face paled when she saw the man on the floor, all five liters of his blood on the floor. She fainted.

The shadowed man rolled his eyes, though no one would have seen. "Can't find _any _decent help these days..."

He withdrew another knife and flicked his wrist. The knife lodged itself into the picture boy's face.

"I'll just have to do it _myself_..."

**To Be Continued...**

_**IF U KNOW WHO THE 'Shadowed Man' IS, DON'T SAY, BECAUSE SOME READERS DON'T KNOW!**_

**I love cliffhangers, and now you all hate ME!  
>But seriosly, I have little to no clue how to do the next chapter, but I have good IDEA!<strong>

**OOH! NEVER MIND! JUST GOT IDEA WRITING THE LAST SENTENCE!**

**(HA HA HA! I amaze myself!)**

**My brother and dad are shouting in the room over. GO MAVS!**

**ANYWHOO...**

**The next chapter will have little to nothing to do with the 'Shadowed Man'. He will come back in CH. 5**

**SO HANG ON, MY LITTLE REVIEWERS!**

**Speaking of reviews... RIGHT BELOW HERE!**

**THANK YOU!**

**COMMUNISTS!**


	4. Finding Out

**OKAAAAAAAAAY!**

**It took me like, forEVER (45-ish minutes) to write dis, so you bettter like it, you creepy FanGurls (and FanGuys).**

_**THIS KIND OF TEXT **_**is a flash-back. (No duhr smart ones).**

**OKAAAAAAAY so i'd tell u what happens here, but it would totally ruin the next chapter and this chapter.**

**SOOOOOOOO Without FURTHER delay- ENJOY!**

**BTW- I own nothing except for Jason, Terrence, Blaine, and BlackHawk. (I know, ur thinking- OMG WHO THE HECK IS DAT? Well read and u'll find out, u stupid communists!)**

"_Okay, _lubitule_, stay here for now. When you hear your cue, come on- with your robe on- and then Pop Haley will say your name, and then-"_

_The 8-year-old rolled his eyes. "I know, _Mamica_. I know."_

_Mary smiled at her son and kissed him on his head, taking in a deep whiff of his mop of black hair. She smiled at him. "You've been using my strawberry shampoo."_

_The boy blushed. "It smells good..." he said softly. Mary only laughed._

_Then, a tall, some-what skinny man in a robe came forward. His hair was a dark contrast from his wife's, a dark brown-almost black, while hers was bright orange. His eyes were dark, too, a deep almond brown, while hers were a bright silvery blue. Mary kissed her husband's lips tenderly. Dick made a face, and his parents laughed. John knelt down and ruffled his son's hair. Dick playfully batted at his father. The man swung Dick into his arms as Mary attacked her son with tickles._

_Dick's face turned red as he laughed, sputtering for air. "_Mamica_! _Taticul_! _Se opreste_!" The boy's face was turning blue, and John, laughing heartily, put his son down._

"_So, _fiul_, how do you like the new costumes?"_

_Dick opened his small yellow robe and scowled at the bright red, green, and yellow spandex. "I look like a... a... bird or something."_

_Mary wiped hair from the boy's head. "Not just any _paserea_, _fiul_. A robin."_

_The boy frowned at his mom. "A robin? _Mamica_, kids my age get beat up for nicknames like that!"_

_John pulled his wife and son into a huddle. "We could call you our _aflate sub ochii_."_

_Dick scowled. "Flying squirrel? Seriously?"_

_John and Mary laughed._

_Just then, Pop Haley's voice rang out amongst the circus din. "...JOHN AND MARY GRAYSON! THE FLYING GRAYSONS!"_

_Mary skipped out to the post and nimbly climbed up it, John on her heels. It took them moments to get up what seemed like thousands of feet. Dick smiled up at his parents. John grabbed the trapeze bar as people began to scream. Dick watched as the larger version of himself swung from bar to bar gracefully, like a flying squirrel. Dick giggled at the thought. Flying squirrels weren't as graceful as his dad._

_There was a rustling sound, and Dick snapped to attention. Turning, he saw a man in a black suit with white hair and two differently colored eyes stepping out of the tent. Scowling, Dick followed him._

_He peered out of the tent flaps just in time to see the man pocketing a knife. The boy's eyes grew wide. What was that man doing with-_

_But he didn't have time to think._

_Pop Haley's voice announced, "DICK GRAYSON!"_

_Like the little flying squirrel that he was, Dick scrambled up the pole and stood proudly in the spotlight, his tiny chest jutted out. He was about to take off his robe, but he heard a small _snap_, like a string being pulled so tight that it burst in two._

_Looking up, Dick's baby blues widened._

_That was _exactly _what it was._

_The ropes that were attached to the ropes that held the trapeze bars- the main 'wires', as Dick called them- were cut about halfway. Dick could see the threads unraveling. He turned to shout a warning to his mother and father, but just then-_

SNAP!

"_DIIICCCCKKKKK!" his mother screamed as she fell._

_Dick saw the whole thing._

_He _heard _the whole thing._

_The crunch of bones..._

_The cries of the people in the stands..._

_The small _thud _of the trapeze bars falling next to his parents' dead bodies._

_As fast as his tiny frame could carry him, Dick scrambled down the post, robe and all, and ran to his parents' side. His mother was lying with her feet next to his father's head, which was clearly busted open. Blood flowed freely from John Grayson's head. His almond eyes were open wide, unblinking, lifeless, and his mouth was open in a shocked expression. His bright green spandex was stained brown already. Dick looked to his mother and saw that her orange hair was sticking to her face with her blood acting as an adhesive. Her legs and arms stuck out at odd angles, as did Dick's father's, and there was a trickly of blood coming out of the corner of her mouth, another steady stream falling from her nose._

_Dick hadn't even realized that he was crying and screaming until two strong arms pulled him away from the people he loved so dearly. Turning, he saw Star-Spangled Samantha, the elephant rider, in her brightly colored, sparkly bikini, and Bruno, the clown with rainbow hair and a suit of pink and navy blue. Samantha's makeup was running down her face, and Bruno's eyes were about to overflow with tears. The two hugged Dick close, not even bothering that he had blood all over his face, arms, legs, suit- their blood..._

"Mamica_..." the boy moaned as he sobbed into Samantha's bare-skinned shoulder. "_Taticul_... _Nu, nu, nu, nu, nu_! They can't be dead... They can't be... _Nu_! _Ei nu pot fi mort_... They just can't..."_

Dick sat up bolt-right in his large bed. He had sweat all over his silk pajama top and pants. He then realized that he was also crying.

The small boy wiped away his tears and snot with his sleeve, then looked down at the red fabric dejectedly. He bit back a sob that racked his body. "It was just a dream..." the boy said to himself. But it didn't help.

It _wasn't _just a dream...

It was a memory...

Dick wasn't tired. Not in the slightest.

So, the boy dragged his little body out of the king-sized bed and shuffled his feet across the soft carpeted floor. Alfred had already warned him not to eat in his new bedroom, because the carpet was from _China_, so it was very _expensive_. Dick giggled inwardly at how serious the butler had been. After all, it was only carpet, right?

Dick pulled off the silk that was plastered to his skin and threw it across the room, just barely missing the clothes bin. He then pulled on a small Superman shirt that he had bought about a week before. Smiling, he also pulled on the white basketball shorts that Barbara had _insisted _that he _needed_.

Dick then left his room silently, tip-toeing down the hall, the cold tiles under his feet making his tiny toes go numb.

Suddenly, a shout of thunder shook the Manor. Dick bit his lip to keep from screaming, but he jumped almost a foot.

Dick had _always _hated thunder.

When he was littler, he would climb into bed with his mom and dad in their trailer, and his mom would cuddle him close while his dad sang silly songs to make the boy giggle while the thunder roared outside.

But now, his parents weren't there.

They'd _never _be there, Dick realized.

He bit his lip again, this time to keep from crying.

He found himself lost in the Manor, weaving in and out of the hallways and looking up at the menacing portraits and pictures of 'proud Waynes from previous generations', as Alfred had put it. They looked more like snooty kings and queens, in Dick's opinion.

Another shout of thunder, and Dick found himself jumping into the nearest room, through the doorless archway, and into a warm, velvet chair. There was an empty fireplace in front of him, and a grandfather clock and a grand baby piano behind him, to his right, away from the parlor enterence. There were two large windows that showed the grounds of Wayne Manor, but Dick refused to look.

Another blast of thunder, and Dick squeaked, pulling himself deep into the chair.

He shivered and hugged his knees.

Then, a warm, small hand touched his shoulder, causing the boy to jump. Looking up, he saw Blaine's kind face, her blonde hair disheveled from her sleeping, and her black eyes looking curiously at Dick. "Dick? Are- are you okay?" she asked in her innocent, girly voice.

Dick shook his head. "I- I miss them..."

Blaine sighed heavily and smiled weakly at Dick. She nudged him. "Scoot over."

He did, and Blaine plopped down next to him, her pink cotton nightgown falling almost to the floor, past her feet. Another bolt of thunder, and Dick found himself in Blaine's warm embrace. The young girl shushed him and stroked his hair. "It's okay, Dickie. I'm here. You're okay."

"I- I don't like thunder..."

Blaine smiled. "Yeah? I never would'a guessed."

Dick just smiled at her.

There came the pattering of feet, and Dick and Blaine looked up to find a bleary-eyed Terrence wandering up the hall. He yawned and leaned into the doorway. "Why's eve'yone up?" he slurred, wiping sleep from his eyes.

"Nightmares," Dick said softly.

Terrence nodded knowingly. He went and sat at the foot of the chair, Blaine's feet resting on his shoulder, but the older boy didn't seem to care, or he was too tired to do anything about it. "Do you wanna talk about it?" he asked Dick, looking at the empty fireplace. "I mean, Alfred talks to me about my nightmares, and it makes me feel a bit better."

Dick shook his head, and Blaine smiled dimly. "It's okay, Dickie. We understand... We _all _understand..."

"Yeah," Terrence chimed in. "All of us are here for... one reason or another," (he posed the statement very uneasily) "and we understand each other well enough, I guess."

Blaine snorted. "Good job, Terry."

"What?"

Suddenly, the grandfather clock opened.

Yes, _opened_.

Dick looked at it, his eyes wide as quarters, his mouth so far open that you could have shoved a softball in it. Blaine's face was the same, but Terrence just blushed furiously as three figures stepped out of the clock.

The first was the shortest- a female, by the silhouette. She donned what looked like a short purple dress with long sleeves and purple leggings. She had long black gloves and boots (with heels) on, and she wore and black cape. On her chest was a bright yellow bat; on her face was a black mask with ears pointed up; and on her hips resided a yellow belt with several different circular pockets. Her bushel of bright red hair draped down her back and over the cape that nipped at her heels.

The second figure was much taller and muscular. He wore a full black body suit that covered him from his neck to his wrists and ankles. He wore short white ankle boots and white gloves up to his elbows. He had a mask on (white with black lenses) that covered from where his cropped brown hair began down to his nose. On his chest was a white and silver hawk. He, too, had a pocketed belt that wrapped around his hips- only _his _was silver.

The last figure was definitely the most intimidating. He was taller than both of the other... freaks, and his shoulders and arms were massive. He wore all black- his muscled suit, his gloves, his boots, his cape- His cape. It swept the ground behind him in several v-cut corners. It came forward and attached to his shoulder pads, then linked up to- his _mask_. It was _terrifying_. Dick shuddered as he saw the bat-like face peering at him. There was a large bat on the man's chest, and he wore a bright yellow belt. _What is it with these people and belts? _Dick wondered.

The man slowly walked up to Dick and his new foster siblings, the heels on his boots clicking on the hard wood floor. He stopped right behind the chair and looked down at Blaine and Dick, who held each other tightly. Slowly, the 'man' removed his mask.

"Bruce?" Blaine asked, her eyes growing wider (if that was even possible).

He nodded grimly, eying Terrence, who was looking sheepish.

Suddenly, it clicked for Dick. "Y-You're Batman!" he said in awe.

Bruce couldn't help but smile a bit at the kid's obvious amazement. "Yes, yes I am."

Dick and Blaine eyed each other, then turned back to Bruce and said in synch, "Cool!"

The other two figures appeared on either side of Bruce, their masks off. "Jason?" Dick asked, just as Blaine said, "Barbara?"

The two laughed, and Barbara said, "Yup! I'm Batgirl, and Jason here's BlackHawk."

Jason blushed, rubbing the back of his head. "Yeah, I know what you're thinking- how does a hawk relate to a bat? Well, see-"

Bruce shrugged him off and gave the summary. "BlackHawk existed about a month after I took in Jason. He found out about my being Batman only a week after coming to live at the Manor." Bruce gave Jason an odd 'I-can't-believe-you-figured-it-out-you-brat-but-I'm-still-proud-of-you' smirk. "He trained for almost a month, and I realized that he was amazing with technology."

Jason blushed again. "What can I say? My dad was a computer freak."

Bruce smiled. "And so, I let him become my weapons and electronics expert. He's not the best fighter-" (Jason blushes) "-but he's good. Terrific with nun-chucks."

(And you know what Jason does.)

Bruce rounded on Barbara. "_Barbara_ took longer to figure it out, to my surprise. But when she did, she didn't even need training- her father already trained her, being a cop, in martial arts and such." Barbara itched a bit at the mention of her real father. "She took on being Batgirl, and I was furious." Barbara grinned at Bruce sheepishly, and he rolled his eyes. "Anyways, we've been this since. Terrence is in training, but he's not ready for the real crime."

Blaine slowly turned to face Terrence, a grimace on her face. "TERRENCE!"

He squeaked and ran behind Jason. The sixteen-year-old grabbed his foster sister by the waist before she could attack her 'brother'. Blaine's face was red as she yelled. "YOU KNEW AND YOU DIDN'T TELL ME?"

There came the sound of running footsteps, and Alfred appeared in a nightgown and a nighthat, a candle in one hand. He looked like a man from pioneer times. Dick stifled a giggle. "Oh!" the British man exclaimed when he saw the situation. He pulled himself together quickly. "Master Bruce, I am very sorry that the younger masters- and mistress- were out of bed. I can assure you that this won't go unnoticed-"

Bruce held up a hand. "It's okay, Alfred. I knew this would happen eventually."

There was an awkward silence. Jason put down Blaine, who had calmed down admirably.

Dick squirmed in his seat. His nightmares were forgotten- for the moment- and now, he was just wondering what was going to happen next.

Bruce was wondering the same thing.

Blaine suddenly piped up in her cute yet somewhat annoying voice, "Can _we _join you?"

**OKAYYYYY_ A bit of Blaine and Dick bonding (NO ROMANCE WHATSOEVER- HE'S EIGHT, YOU PERVS!) in there for ya! (This will be important in future chapters!)**

**I feel sorry for Terrence... :(**

**1. Dick was speaking Romanian in the flash-back, and I'm too lazy to write down what he said in English, but most of it was just terms of endearment.**

**2. Blaine and Dick are NOT GOING TO DATE IN ANY ONE OF MY FANFICS SO GET USED TO IT, YOU STUPID COMMUNISTS!**

**3. No reviews= no more chapters. :*(**

**SO GET REVIEWING!**

**(no flames, please, K?) :)**


	5. The Movies

**Okaaaaaaaaaaaay... Dis chapter is REALLY LONG... sry...**

**I'm trying to strengthen Dick's relationship between his new siblings, so dat's _mainly _what dis chapter is about, but it's REALLY GOOD (and im not just saying dat bcause i wrote it) so PLEASE read to the ending, but I don't want to say anything and ruin the surprise!**

**This is , as in you write stories about stuff you DONT OWN, so, OBVIOUSLY, i own NOTHING HERE!**

**(Except for Steve, Fatty, Meanie, Terrence, Jason, and Blaine...)**

**OKAAAAAAAY so maybe I own a bit...**

**BUT LEAVE ME ALONE YOU STUPID COMMUNISTS!**

**warnings: blood and violence. :))))**

**(im gonna start putting in warnings, BTW!)**

Bruce had said that he 'needed time to think about it'.

So, Blaine had been mad and avoided her foster father at all costs. She also ignored Jason, Barbara, and Terrence, leaving only Dick for her to share her anger with.

They sat in the young girl's pink and purple princess-styled room. Her large bed had four posts and a curtain of long pink fabric surrounding it. Each of the four walls was a different hue of pink, and the carpet was dark purple. Her double-windows had light butterflies and a castle painted on them, and she had a princess-tiara-shaped chair next to a tiny pink piano that Alfred was teaching her to play. Now, the eleven-year-old girl was in her favorite skirt and yellow blouse, hugging a 'Cinderella' pillow to her chest.

"... I mean, _seriously_! I can understand _Bruce _not telling me, but _Terrence_? And _Barbara_? I can _maybe _understand Jason, 'cause he doesn't talk that much, but Barb and I are like sisters! Well, technically, we are to some extent, but that's beside the point!" And she went on and on and on.

Dick just sat there, looking out her window, as he leaned against one of the bed posts. He was twidling his fingers mindlessly, watching as a little sparrow made its way from the forest grounds back to its nest, carrying sticks and twigs as it went, getting ready for bed, even though it was only about 7:45 PM.

It had been five days since they 'found out' about Bruce's, Barbara's, and Jason's favorite pass time. (Dick was surprised that Blaine had kept up her tirade this whole time.) Terrence had been training with them, but was not an 'official vigilante of the night', according to Barbara.

"...I mean, who does he think he is- my _father_?" Blaine paused. "Okay... maybe to an extent, but that's beside the point!"

Dick had a strongly persuasive moment where he wanted to hit his head against a heavy brick.

Just as Blaine was about to begin again, there was a knock at the door. Jason poked his head in, and Barbara's head popped in just below his. Terrence's head appeared below Barbara's. Blaine gave a loud 'harrumph!' and turned her back to them. Dick wasn't quite mad, though- not anymore. Sure, he had been upset at first, mad even, because what 8-year-old boy _didn't _want to be a super-hero? But he was trying to be good now so that Bruce would let him train.

Dick looked at the three and said, "C'mon in."

They eased into the room, Barbara sitting at the window sill, facing the bed; Terrence plopping down on the bed next to Dick (Blaine inched away) and Jason simply standing in the corner. He gave a heavy sigh. "Look, B. I know you're mad at us, still, but he made us swear on a _Bible _not to tell anyone."

Blaine didn't answer him. She just kept jutting her lip out, her chin high in the air.

Barbara suddenly grinned. "Plan B?" she asked Jason aloud.

Dick cocked an eyebrow as Jason nodded. He pulled five tickets out from his jacket pocket. "I got tickets to a new _moooovie_," he said, projecting the last word towards Blaine. Her ears seemed to twitch, but she remained in the same pose.

"With popcorn?"

"Popcorn _and _soda!" Terrence beamed.

Blaine turned and jumped onto Terrence's lap. "Okay!"

So, the five found themselves in one of Bruce's _many _cars- a Porsche- (but only _after _telling Alfred where they were going) and drove on down to the newest public theater in Gothom. It was called _'The Gothom Theater'_. Dick giggled. Origional.

Jason got out and scooped Blaine into his arms- she giggled- and locked the car doors after Dick, Barbara, and Terrence jumped out. Looking around uneasily (this _is _Gothom, and they were driving a _Porsche_, for God's sake!), Jason reached a hand out to Terrence, who took it. Barbara held Dick's hand tightly as the boy looked around, slightly frightened by the number of people he saw out- there were men and women in suits and formal dresses and shawls; there were homeless people; there were thugs and druggies.

Safe to say, not the best atmosphere for a bunch of kids.

But Jason tried to ignore that- it was just how Gothom was- as he stepped up to the teller. He spoke into the tiny microphone, "I have five for _Super Vacation_."

The teller, a man by the name of _Steve_ (as his tag said) groaned. "That's a terrible kids' movie."

Barbara growled as she said, "Well, obviously, we're kids, _Steve_."

Steve finally got a good look at the kids and cocked an eyebrow. "Say, yere the Wayne kiddos." He leaned into the mic, a crooked grin on his face. "Better watch out for the rapists and serial kil-"

Jason hit the teller's window harshly. "_Thank you_, Steve!"

And they walked into the theater.

Jason sent Barbara, Terrence, and Blaine to get seats, but Dick wanted to help his new older brother. Jason smiled and ruffled the boy's hair.

Dick snapped. "Stop it!" he screamed.

Jason blushed as he looked around. _Everyone _was staring. He looked back to Dick, who was also blushing. "I- I'm sorry... It's just- my- my _Taticul_-"

"You're _what_?"

Dick blushed even brighter. "My... Daddy did that..."

Jason nodded, his mouth in a small 'o'. "Sorry, Dick."

They reached the front of the line, and Jason purchased two large popcorns, two extra large Sprites, and a couple packages of Gummy Worms. He winked at Dick as the boy tried to carry the huge bag of popcorn (huge to him, at least). "We won't tell Alfie about the soda or candy or extra butter on the popcorn, will we, Dick?"

Dick's eyes twinkled at the prospect of having a secret to share with his 'brother'.

The movie started a few minutes after they entered. Dick was too small for the chairs to stay down when he sat on them, so he sat hunched down on Barbara's lap. The movie was a cute one- about a family of four, a mom, dad, son, and daughter. The son was, oddly, about Dick's age. The girl was about Jason's. They carted all over the country, seeing things like the World's Largest Ball of String, and the World's Largest Vase Collection. The whole time, the girl was whining and texting, and the boy was always having to go to the bathroom just when the family was out in the middle of nowhere. Terrence laughed so hard when the boy peed his pants that Sprite came out of his nose.

Dick was snuggling against Barbara's chest, twirling her red hair around his finger as he watched.

The family was in Kansas, and they went to-

Dick paled-

A _circus_.

It showed the whole act- the clowns, the elephant riders, the lion tamers (all in about two minutes), and the whole time, Dick was frozen stiff, his eyes open wide and his lip quivering. He felt goosebumps running up his arms, even with how warm Barbara's chest was against his back.

Then, _they _came on.

The _acrobats_.

Dick couldn't hold it in. He whimpered and dug his face into Jason's sleeve as he cried softly. It took Jason a moment to notice the boy, but when he did, he grew visibly worried. He silently poked Barbara's shoulder, but she waved him off, enticed in the movie. Blaine and Terrence were sharing their last pack of Gummy Worms in the seat to Jason's left.

Jason poked Barbara harder, but she waved him off again. "Blaine has the soda."

"Barbara!" Jason hissed loudly.

Several people threw napkins and said, "Be quiet, love-birds!"

Jason rolled his eyes inwardly at them, then nudged Barbara again.

She _finally _looked at him. "Wha-" But she saw Dick, his face buried in Jason's sleeve. She immedeatly stood, blocking several peoples' view as she shuffled out of the row (they were sitting front and center, unfortunately.)

Terrence and Blaine didn't want to go, but Jason somehow managed to pry them away. "And the teller said it was terrible!" Terrence scoffed.

They walked out of the theater, depositing their trash in the outside bin, and Barbara sat down on a bench outside. The moon had already risen, but it was the summer, so they didn't have school the next day, and patrol for Jason and Barbara didn't start for another two or three hours (midnight). Barbara let Dick cry into her shoulder for a good five minutes. The whole time, all of the kids were silent.

None of them knew why Dick was in the foster system (except for Jason), but, obviously, something in the movie had tipped him into tears, and the other kids could respect that. They knew nothing about each others' pasts, ironically, but they respected each other, just the same. If something had bothered Dick about that movie, they would never speak of the stupid, terrible movie again.

Although it kind of bugged Terrence that he didn't know what happened to the family's (so far) terrible vacation.

About five to ten minutes later, Dick had stopped crying completely, hiccups and everything gone, but his eyes were still red and puffy, and his face was pale, bloodless. Barbara kissed his head, sniffing his black hair.

_Strawberry?_

Dick looked up at her, then, all of a sudden, hugged her neck tightly. She froze a moment, but soon returned the gesture. Dick turned back to his 'siblings' and said softly, "I'm sorry..."

"For what?" Blaine asked, eyebrow cocked.

Dick looked at her like she had grown another head. "I- I made you miss the movie..."

Terrence rolled his eyes. "No biggie. It was a terrible movie, anyways."

Steve stuck his head out of the box. "TOLD 'YA!"

"SHUT UP, STEVE!" Jason called back.

The man, looking disgrundled, went back to his customers.

Jason turned to Dick and brushed some hair from his face. "It's okay, Dick. We understand, and you don't have to talk about it if you don't want to..."

Dick frowned. "You- you don't know? It- it was in all of the papers..."

Terrence laughed. "We don't really read papers-"

"-Or magazines-"

"-Or tabloids," Barbara finished.

Jason looked uncomfortable for a moment. He didn't know whether he should answer Dick's question or not...

Dick took a deep breath, but Blaine put a hand on his cheek. "It's okay, Dickie... You don't have to tell us if you don't want to."

Feeling rather relieved, Dick sighed, smiling at her. "Thanks, Blaine..."

Jason stood, stretching his arms high into the air. "Well, we'd best be getting home. Alfred told us to be back right when the movie was over, and it's about to finish up anyways, so..."

They all walked out to the Porsche, but when they got there, all of the 'Wayne' kids' jaws dropped a mile.

The white-laced tires were slashed- all four of them. The front windshield was shattered inwards. The sparkling blue paint on the hood and sides was scratched up, and the convertible top was ripped to pieces. Jason's eyes darted around, and Barbara put Dick down. Terrence, Barbara, and Jason formed a protective circle around Dick and Blaine, who were both trying not to look frightened.

Nothing happened at first.

There was only the busy, night-life city noise of Gothom.

Then, they appeared like ghosts.

Jason took a defensive stance, Barbara an offensive, and Terrence a protective. His legs out and apart, firmly digging into the concrete, Jason squinted as the broad-shouldered goons appeared. There were five. Three of them had guns.

_Shi- Crap_, Jason thought.

_Holy poop! _Terrence thought.

_This is gonna be fun... _Barbara thought.

_Oh God, oh God, oh God..._ Blaine thought.

… Dick thought.

The other two men had knives- long, jagged hunting knives. All of them wore classic black and dark green. They were all fat, but muscular still, and each of them had some sort of prominent, visable scar, either on their faces or their hands.

One raised his pistol and aimed it at Jason. "Da boss jus' wants da kid."

Barbara rolled her eyes. "Technically, we're _all _kids."

"Dat kid!" another said. This one was the fattest, so Dick decided to call him Fatty. The first one he would call Meanie, because he had a gun aimed at Jason, which, in Dick's opinion, was a rather mean thing to do.

"_Which _kid?" Barbara repeated.

"Shut up, witch."

"Which witch?"

"I said SHUT. UP!" And Fatty ran at Barbara, knife raised. Barbara did a move so fast that you could hardly see it. But, if you had a slow-mo-camera, you would have seen her trip the man, kick his- um- jewels, and knee him in the face before stealing the knife and using the hilt on the man's solar plexis to knock him out.

Baldie (who had a gun) shot a bullet at Terrence, who skillfully rolled away from it, dragging Dick and Blaine behind him.

Jason and Barbara eyed each other before rushing in.

Jason took out a gunman with ease, and Barbara downed another (Meanie). That left a man with a gun, who was slowly approaching Terrence, and the man with the knife, who went around the car, unnoticed by the older kids.

Terrence round-house kicked the gun from the man's hand, and Jason ran up behind him, putting him in a sleeper hold.

The man let out a strangled cry, and tears welled in Dick's eyes as he saw the man's face turn blue. "STOP IT, STOP IT, STOP IT!" he screamed at Jason. Shocked, the boy dropped the man, who grabbed the gun and quickly turned. Before anyone could act, he blew a bullet at Jason. The tiny piece of metal bit through his shoulder, and Jason cried out it pain, grabbing at it. Barbara landed a kick to the man's head, and he fell, unconscious.

But, in those moments, the knife-man jumped out from behind the car and dug the knife deep into Dick's calf. The boy let out a blood-curdling scream as the metal rammed through his tender flesh. Blaine, rage in her eyes, all fears forgotten, kicked the man square in the jaw. Needless to say, he passed out.

Jason ignored his shoulder- he had had worse- and picked Dick up tightly. The boy's face was even paler than before, and tears streamed down his cheek. "T-t-take it o-o-o-out!" he moaned, but Jason didn't make a move to.

"Sorry, Dick, but it'll be worse if we take it out..."

Barbara snapped out her cell as Terrence pulled a few pairs of hand-cuffs from the car. (Batman _and _Bruce Wayne are always prepared!) He locked the men all together and then to a light pole.

Normal enough for Gothom, no one had reacted even in the slightest to the gun-fire or screams.

Or so they thought...

Steve had heard the gun shots coming from the back parking and had called for Commissioner Dent (how he had his direct number, nobody knows).

Barbara called Alfred, and the conversation went somewhat like this:

Barbara: Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God...

_Ring... Ring... Ring..._

Barbara: Oh my God, oh my God, oh my-

Alfred: _Miss Barbara, what is-_

Barbara: Oh my God, Alfred! Some freaks just attacked us and wrecked the Porsche!

Alfred: _Is everyone alright, Miss Barbara?_

Barbara: No! No, Jason got shot in the shoulder, and Dick has a #!$ knife in his calf!

Alfred: _Good heavens! _(off the line) _Master Bruce! MASTER BRUCE!_

Bruce: (off the line) _God sakes, Alfred, what is-_

Alfred: _The children are stranded at the theater and Masters Jason and Richard are injured!_

Bruce: (already gone)

Jason sat with his back leaning on the car as Terrence pushed down heavily on his shoulder with gauze (again, _Batman_, people!) to stop the bleeding, to no avail. Dick was in Jason's lap, biting his lip to keep from screaming at the pain. If he was going to be a superhero, he needed to get over pain. Blaine was sitting with Dick's head in her lap, his legs and torso in Jason's. She was trying to remain calm, but in her head, she was freaking out as much as Barbara was on the phone. _Seriously, you think working with _Batman _in _Gothom _would make her chillax..._

But this was her 'little brother', for God's sake! SHE HAD THE RIGHT TO BE FREAKING OUT!

Soon enough, blaring sirens could be heard, and an ambulance and two police cars showed up. The Commissioner himself had showed, but probably only because Steve had called _him _specifically (again, unsure how that creep got his number...). Pulling his pants up over his fat gut, Dent sauntered over to the torn-up Porsche. When he saw the foster kids of the richest man in Gothom (and the third in the world) he, too, freaked out a little bit.

Two medical personnel tried to pull Dick away from the kids, but Terrence refused for the boy to go alone. So, he rode in the back of the ambulance with Barbara while Blaine stayed at 'the scene of the crime' with Jason, who refused to leave until Bruce and Alfred got there. So, the medics took the bullet out of his arm right there. He only winced a _little _bit, and Dent smirked. "You're a tough kid, Wayne."

"It's _Holmes_," Jason corrected.

Dent blushed, his mustache looking like whipped cream against two large cherries. "I- I- I'm sorry, son-"

Blaine punched her 'brother' on his uninjured arm. "He _means _to say, Mr. Commissioner, sir, that we're only foster kids, not actually _adopted_." She glared at her brother, who smirked a tiny bit.

Alfred and Bruce appeared, both looking a bit disheveled, and ran to Jason. "Where's Dick?" Bruce said as soon as he saw his oldest 'son' was alright.

"They took him to the hospital," Blaine said before Jason could even open his mouth.

"Go on, Master Bruce," Alfred said, straightening his coat. "I shall stay here with Master Jason and Miss Blaine."

Bruce looked to Jason, who nodded, and ran back out to his car.

Dent was escourting the goonies to a car. He stood in front of Jason, who was being helped up by Alfred and a few medics (much to his dismay), looking rather confused. "Who knocked out those goons?"

"Batman?" Jason lied-slash-said-in-a-guessing-voice. "I was kinda freaked out when they attacked Dick, then I got shot, so, well... yeah."

Dent put up a hand, nodding. "Understandable. But, why did Batman leave if he knew two kids were injured?"

Blaine and Jason eyed each other, and Alfred said quickly, "Actually, he was the one to notify Master Bruce and myself. He said he had another case to take care of-"

"-and he left right as the cars pulled up," Blaine said convincingly. She pointed at a building that was almostly completely englufed in shadows. "He went that way."

Dent nodded. "Right... Now just to question those freaks."

Jason grabbed the Commissioner's arm as he was about to saunter off, but he forgot to use his good one. He flinched a bit, but recovered swiftly. "Commissioner Dent, the men said something about their boss wanting one of us."

Dent nodded, his eyes inquiring. "Alrighty. I'll get them to talk. Thanks, son."

And he was off.

The medics tried to convince Jason to ride in an ambulance, but Jason didn't want to. Only when Alfred pointed out that 'Master Bruce' had taken the car did Jason give in. They dressed his wound in the bumpy ride, Alfred sitting next to him and Blaine sitting on his lap.

**At the hospital...**

Bruce was furious. One, at the jack****s that knifed Dick and shot Jason. Two, at himself for letting them go. Three, at the doctors for not letting him see his newly-graced foster son. He paced around the waiting room as the doctors did surgery to fix up Dick's leg. Barbara was biting her lip, her brows furrowed. After a few minutes, Terrence had fallen asleep with his head in her lap, and she now stroked at his tiny curls absent-mindedly.

Alfred, Blaine, and Jason, with large white bandages under his torn, bloody shirt, ran into the room. Jason looked paler than the other two who were with him, but that was probably from bloodloss. "How is he?" he asked Bruce, a pleading in his eyes.

Bruce shrugged, not speaking for fear of lashing out at Jason.

Jason sighed heavily and sat down on the edge of the seat, putting his head in his hands. "My God... This is all my fault."

"No it is not, and do not say such things, young man!"

The sharpness of Alfred's tone made all of them look at the old man (except Terrence, who was still asleep). Alfred was frowning deeply at Jason. "It was _no one's _fault," he seemed to project this just as much at Bruce, "except for those _beasts'_. They are the ones that injured you, Master Jason, and Young Master Richard. It was _not your fault_." He spoke to Jason, but looked at Bruce as he said this.

Bruce nodded, sighed, and sat down, pulling Blaine into his lap. She curled up into a ball and nuzzled against his shirt, dragging his jacket around her shoulders as she tried to sleep.

It took three hours before a doctor came out to talk to the Wayne 'family'. Barbara shook Terrence awake. He bolted as soon as he heard the doctor say Dick's name. Blaine hadn't been able to sleep, so she was wide awake in Bruce's arms as he stood in front of the smiling doctor. "Richard is okay. He lost some blood, but not too much. He got several stitches and has a small cats on his leg to keep him from tearing them. You can see him now- room C23."

Bruce, the children, and Alfred all walked (closer to ran) down the hall to the room.

There was Dick, his tiny, sleeping form on a huge white bed, with his small leg in a bulky cast, and an IV in his arm. He looked so peaceful...

Bruce sat Blaine down on the foot of the bed, and she curled up at Dick's feet like a kitten. Terrence sat at Dick's side while Jason brooded in the corner. (He had learned much from the Bat.) Barbara and Alfred stood next to the bed as Bruce pulled up a chair to sit next to Dick. He brushed some hair from the boy's face, and, in turn, Dick's eyes fluttered open. "Ugh... Bruce?"

Bruce nodded. "Dick, you're okay now... You're in a hosp-"

"What happened to Fatty and Meanie?"

Bruce looked confused, then Dick corrected himself. "The bad people?"

Bruce smiled dimly. "They're at the police station being questioned."

Dick nodded and yawned. Bruce sighed heavily. "Dick, I am so, _so _sorry about this... Being a Wayne is difficult, with all of those as- bad people trying to hurt you for money... If you want, I can take you back to Apri-"

"NO!" The boy shot up and would have jumped to his feet had Barbara not gently pushed him back down. "No! No, no, no... _Nu, nu, nu... Va rog, va rog_, please! Don't make me go back to her! Please, please, _va rog, va rog, va rog_! _Imi place aici_! I really do! I like it here! _Va rog_-"

Bruce put a hand on Dick's chest to calm the boy down. "Okay, okay," he _almost _chuckled. "You can stay if you want."

"THANK YOU!"

Dick had his tiny arms wrapped around Bruce's neck in an instant. Bruce lost his breath for a moment, but he didn't really care as he felt the tiny boy's warm arms holding him tightly. This was what it was to have kids, and, breathing or not, Bruce dealt with it (and enjoyed it).

Bruce suddenly had a dumbfounded moment. "Wait," he said to Dick, "were you just speaking Romanian?"

Dick grinned sheepishly.

One man had managed to stay hidden while he watched his fellow goons get beat up. He returned to Zucco shortly, right after the red-head called the cops (apparently, to him). He was losing his breath as he ran, gun in one hand, hat in the other, back to their 'base'.

He leaned over, elbows on his knees, to catch his breath, before knocking on the door.

Zucco's cold, strained voice called out, _"Come in..."_

Swalloing harshly, the man entered.

Again, the boss's face was hidden by shadows. "Boss, we a'didn' get da kid-"

"_Obviously_," he snapped.

The man shook in his boots. "I- I mean, we- dey got caught by the coppers, boss- But it's him! Da kid! It's defin'ly Grayson! It's defin'ly 'im, boss!"

The shadowed man grinned like the Cheshire Cat, fingering his knife. "Good... good... Now, we have a better aim at our target..."

The maid fainted again when she saw another dead, bloody body on her boss's floor.

**YAAAAAAAAAAAAY! ANOTHER CHAPTER COMPLETE!**

**SOOOOO NEXT CHAPTER:**

**1. First day of Training**

**2. Gala where Dick, Blaine, and Terrence meets some Leaguers for the first time**

**3. mission w/Batman, Batgirl, and BlackHawk.**

**YOU CHOOSE!**

**Oh yah, but, to do that, you need to review...RIGHT HERE!**

**PWEASE?**

**(OR NO MORE CHAPTERS!)**


	6. The Gala

**Most people wanted #2- Terrence, Blaine, and Dick meet some Leaguers at a Gala- but I put in a bit more... action... to that idea... (evil chuckle that rises into an evil laugh that dives into choking on spit)**

**I OWN NOTHING (except for Blaine, Terrence, Jason, BlackHawk, and _Saint Agatha's House for the Needy_- but i give no freaking poop about the last one, so use it if u must...)**

**WARNINGS: Blood, stitching of wounds, violence, cuteness, and a sugar-high Barbara**

**ENJOY!**

Dick winced as Alfred slowly unwrapped the gauze on his leg. Alfred gave the boy a look that said, 'I'm-sorry-it-hurts-young-master-but-hold-still-or-no-more-cookies-for-you'. Dick grit his teeth as the gauze lightly tugged on his stitches. It had been almost a week since the movie incident, and, ever since, Dick and Jason had been forced to stay inside the Manor, inside either their rooms or the kitchen to 'heal'. Jason was in agony- not being able to go on patrol for a whole week- and Barbara was _not _helping him. But her stories were much appreciated by Dick and Terrence. (Whenever Barbara began a story, Blaine ran off to mope with Jason.)

Dick's leg had healed up mostly, but it was still sore- after all, he had gotten a knife shoved into it, _and _he was _only _8! (So give the kid a break, you communists!) He sat on the kitchen counter (on a towel, mind you) while Terrence stood at his side, holding the smaller boy's hand as Alfred re-wrapped Dick's wound.

Dick tried not to wince- or Alfred would make him miss the Gala that night.

Jason, Terrence, and Barbara moaned and groaned at the prospect of a gala, but Blaine seemed to enjoy them. ("Only because she gets to dress up!" Terrence had said.) Dick was interested. Not in dressing up, but in seeing who all would attend. He had been told that Bruce gave money to dozens of organizations all over the country- and the _world_, for that matter- and that tons of important people always showed up.

So, Dick was curious.

Alfred finished up and patted Dick's thigh. "Now, then, Master Dick," (Alfred refused to call Dick just 'Dick'.) "it seems that you are healing properly..." The old man pursed his lips. "Are you _sure _you want to go to the Gala tonight, Master Dick?"

The black-haired boy nodded eagerly, and Alfred gave his best sigh. "Alright, I suppose." A timer rang, and Alfred quickly turned to the oven as Terrence lifted Dick off of the counter and onto the floor. Alfred pulled out a pan of cookies. (Ah... Alfred...)

Terrence reached for one, but Alfred snapped at his hand. "I have to make ten dozen for tonight, and _you_, Master Terrence, are _not helping_."

Terrence had already stolen five- one for each of the 'kids'.

Smiling sheepishly, Terrence pulled Dick into the game room where Barbara and Jason were having a 'Battle of the Bands'.

Jason was looking calm as he played the guitar, standing in the middle of the room, but Barbara was shaking her red hair in every which way as she banged on the plastic drums. She had -5678 points. Blaine was singing, skipping around in circles, weaving in and out of where Jason and Barbara were in the room.

Smiling eagerly, Terrence grabbed the base and hit 'start' to join back in. Dick looked around uneasily.

Jason saw the boy in his peripheral vision, and he paused his guitar. Swiftly, Jason got on one knee, reaching out to Dick. "C'mon, Dick."

The boy leaped into Jason's arms, and the bigger boy showed the smaller where to hold the guitar and how to play it, 'strum' it, and use the right buttons.

Pretty soon, Dick beat Jason's high-score.

Then Bruce's.

Then _Alfred's_.

Everyone was amazed at how good the eight-year-old was at the game. He smiled sheepishly up at them as they applauded. Soon enough, though, Alfred came into the room. "The Gala is in an hour. Masters Jason and Terrence, I would appreciate it if you could help Master Dick with his attire."

Nodding to their butler, the kids scurried off to get ready, albeit reluctantly. (Except for Blaine, who pranced up the stairs while singing 'Ring Around the Rosies'.)

"Anyone wanna tell her what that song's really about?" Terrence asked, eyebrow cocked as he walked up to his door. After exchanging glances, Jason and Barbara said in unison, "Nope!" and walked into their rooms.

After a confusing, button-pushing, hair-pulling, teeth-grinding, powder-filling, headache-enducing forty-five minutes later, all five children were down in the decked-out ballroom. Barbara and Blaine donned some rather similar dresses- both about knee-high with lots of frills and lace- only in different colors: red for Blaine, and purple for Barbara. Barbara's hair was up in a tight bun, and Blaine's was down, falling all around her face in rivers of silvery blonde. Jason had on a red dress shirt with charcoal shoes, black slacks, and a white jacket. His hair had taken him almost half an hour, and it still looked messy. Terrence wore a green shirt, blue jacket, navy pants, and those new dress shoes that Alfred had bought him.

_Everyone _had tried to pitch-in to help dress up Dick, and the result was an angelic-looking eight-year-old with his hair in an adorable mess, his white shirt crisp, cleanly tucked in, his pants a deep, deep forest green (hitting _just at his heels_, mind you!) leading down into black shoes. He wore a small light-green tie and a dark, dark gray jacket. Blaine and Barbara would _not shut up _about how 'cute' and 'adorable' and 'angelic' and 'hot' and 'handsome' and- well, you get it- he looked.

Bruce came over to them, his teeth perfectly white, just like his pants and jacket. His shirt was black, and his shoes navy. He smiled at his foster children and greeted them. Blaine and Barbara got kisses on the cheek, Terrence got a high-five, Jason got a hand-shake, and Dick got a fist-bump. (Dick likes fist-bumps, ever since Terrence taught him how to do one and not knock someone out- for an eight-year-old, that kid is pretty strong.)

"The Gala will start in-" Bruce glanced at his watch "-crap! Now."

He dragged his kids up to the steps that led to the podium and stage. There was a large silver goblet-like bowl that had a sign in front of it that read, in fancy cursive scrawl, _'Saint Agatha's House for the Needy'_. Dick didn't like that word. _Needy_. It made people sound like brats, whiny brats. Those people were just like them, so why call them _needy_? Oh, well, they still got money...

Dick felt like his tie was suffocating him as he saw how many people were coming in. There was hundreds of old woman in kinky dresses with their arms attached to men half their age, and the other way around. (No, not old men in kinky dresses, as funny as that may be.)

Jason had wandered off earlier and was now in a gaggle of girls, his arms around two girls' hips while another five crowded around him. Terrence had run off after seeing one of his friends that he hadn't played with since school let out. Barbara was on the dance floor, being traded on and off with different teenage boys. Dick noticed that Jason- despite being _busy_- had his eyes locked on his 'sister' as several attractive men whisked her away.

Bruce was standing at the front podium, shaking hands and thanking people for being there. Dick was staying close to him, and Blaine, feeling sorry for her 'baby brother', had her hand tightly in his. "I'm not going anywhere," she whispered with a smile.

It seemed like _hours _that Bruce was shaking peoples' hands and smiling. (Dick could tell it was a fake smile- it didn't hold the same joy as when the boy had first met his foster father.) After a while, Blaine got bored and dragged Dick away towards the food table. She weaved in and out of people, all the while ignoring the comments of 'Oh, look how cute those two are!' and 'So precious, a protective big sister!'.

They reached the table, and Blaine's head just stuck over the side. She licked her lips as she watched all of the cookies, pastries, and delicacies being snatched up. Dick craned his neck and stood on his toes, but he couldn't see still.

"Do you want chocolate?" Blaine asked, eying him. All the while, she still held his hand. Dick nodded eagerly, and Blaine turned back to the table. She stretched on her toes to grab at the stuff, but her fingertips just barely brushed on the pastries.

Suddenly, a large shadow loomed over the two. Blaine jumped back as a large hand offered her two tiny chocolate pastries on a crisp white napkin. Dick looked up at the gift-giver as Blaine blushed, taking them, and said 'Thank you' very softly.

The man was tall, a bit taller than Bruce, but not as muscular. He had lightly tanned skin and dark green eyes. His hair was blonde, and he had a mustache (curled at the ends, like Alfred's) above his pastel lips. He winked at her. "No problem, little angel. My name's Oliver Queen."

Blaine nodded her head, as her hands were full. "Mr. Queen. My name is Blaine, and this is my foster-brother, Richard."

"I- I go by Dick," he said softly, suddenly deeply enticed by his shoes.

Mr. Queen let out a hearty laugh that reminded Dick oddly of Santa Clause. He patted Blaine's head and was about to ruffle Dick's hair, but Blaine grunted. Mr. Queen's hand froze as he looked at Blaine, who mouthed, "He doesn't like that." Nodding, Mr. Queen smiled. "Enjoy those, Miss Blaine, Mister Dick. I, regretfully, must take my leave."

And he did.

Blaine dragged Dick over to a chair where the two squeezed in together, sharing the messily iced chocolate cakes. The two giggled at the different hats they saw all of the old women wearing- some of them were brightly colored with sequences and looked like they wouldn't fit on a Chihuahua, while others were so large and floppy that they reminded Dick of a blood hound's eyebrows.

Dick's eyes traveled around the room as he licked his tiny fingers. Jason was still flirting with the gaggle of girls, but Barbara had escaped the dance floor and was now speaking with a few other women, all older than her, but all nodding respectively as she spoke.

Terrence made his way over to Blaine. "Wow!" he gasped, wiping sweat from his face.

Blaine frowned distastefully at him. "You shouldn't run in the ballroom, ya know."

Terrence rolled his eyes and stole the rest of her cake. "_You _shouldn't tell me what to do."

Blaine stole it back before he could bite into it. "_You _should get your own!"

Terrence rolled his eyes, and Dick held out the rest of his cake. He was full, having such a tiny belly. Terrence grinned smugly at Blaine. "Seeee? _Some_one loves me."

"Yeah. Alfred."

Terrence stuck his tongue out at her, and Blaine returned the gesture. Dick giggled.

He turned back to look at Jason and Barbara, but they weren't there. Frowning, Dick's eyes ran all over the room until they found the girl and boy standing next to Bruce just off the stage. They were all huddled and whispering. That man- Mr. Queen- stepped forward and began to whisper with them. He said something, though, that made Bruce scowl and shake his head. Dick wished he could hear what they were saying.

Soon enough, though, Jason was making his way over to the three while Barbara and Bruce walked out of the ballroom. He crouched down and looked over both shoulders before whispering to the three, "Something's come up in the Haven. Scarecrow. We'll be back before the Gala's over."

And he left.

Blaine was instantly grumpy again. Terrence was, too, to Dick's surprise. "Why can't we go out and help?" Blaine whined.

"You?" Terrence snapped as he sat down in the chair next to her. "_I've _had training, and they're not even taking _me_!"

Blaine resorted to her earlier tactic and stuck out her tongue.

"I wanna go too," Dick said, and Terrence looked at him, smiling.

"You'd be, like, ten times better than B, I just _know _it!"

"I _was _an acrobat," Dick betrayed.

Blaine and Terrence's jaws dropped open, and Dick flinched. "Really?" they hissed at the same time.

Smiling, Dick nodded. "Yeah. I lived in a cir- never mind..." His face fell, and the two didn't press the subject further.

It was almost an hour and a half before Terrence started to get worried. He looked over at Blaine, but she had fallen asleep, so, instead, he spoke to Dick. "The Gala ends in thirty minutes! Where are they?"

Dick shrugged. "Bloodhaven?" he tried to joke.

Terrence rolled his eyes, but smiled.

Suddenly, there came a shriek.

Blaine bolted awake just as her 'brothers' were running over to what had made the sound.

The people were all screaming now, running around and waving their arms in the air. It was pitch black outside, and, ironically, starting to thunder. Dick and Terrence broke through the crowd and gasped when they saw a man standing on top of a woman, who had a flag in her forehead that said, _"BANG!"_.

The man wore a dingy purple suit and playing-card tie. He was as lanky as he was tall, which was a bit taller than Bruce _and _Mr. Queen. He had frizzy green hair, and his face was chalk white. His smile looked like it had been carved into his lips and cheeks with a meat-cleaver, and his eyes were wilder that his hair, darting around the room as he watched all of the people flooding out of the door.

His eyes fell on Terrence and Dick, and he chuckled, jumping off of the woman's dead body. He kicked up his heels, making their steel bottoms go _click, clack, click_, on the tile floor. Terrence stood in front of Dick, his hands up in tiny fists. The clown laughed and swung at Terrence, who ducked, but he didn't dodge in time to avoid the steel-toed kick that sent him across the room.

The clown looked down several feet at Dick, who was shaking. "Hee hee hoo haa hee!" the clown cried. "Wadda we have here? A little kiddo?" Suddenly, the clown's eyes widened even more (if that was possible) as he recognized Dick. "Ooh! You're the Grayson kiddo... Wayne's newest little play toy!" The clown's expression grew dementedly happier. "Well, I wanna play with _this _toy!"

He pulled something from his jacket- a dart- and threw it at Dick.

Before the boy even knew what he was doing, he back-flipped away. The clown smirked. "Well... this'll be fun..."

He threw random objects- from his jacket and the room- at Dick. Plates, desserts, pens, a rubber duck, a vase, flowers, a water balloon. Dick avoided them all, doing odd flips and curves that he hadn't done in months.

The clown growled. "Alright, _kid_. Now you're really getting on my nerves."

"Now you're getting on _my _nerves!" came a jovial voice from behind Dick. "And I just got here."

He was a tall man and wore all green- pants, sleeveless tunic, boots, gloves, and even a little Robin Hood hat. He had a blonde mustache.

Now, Dick is a very, _very _bright child. (Do _not _underestimate him!) "Mr. Queen?" he whispered.

The man, who was raising a forest green bow and cocking it with an arrow, winked from behind his black mask. "Hiya, kid! The name's Green Arrow!"

Joker grimaced. "Oh, phooey. Where's the _Bat_? It's _him _I wanna play with!"

"Well too bad," came another voice.

Dick turned and felt his eyes widen when he saw a very skinny man in all red. There was a yellow lightning bolt on his chest, and a thin rope of lightning bolts around his waist, where he placed his hands. "The Bat's busy, so you get _us_."

Dick almost squealed with delight.

THE FLASH WAS AT HIS- or rather Bruce's- HOUSE!

And Green Arrow was, too, but Dick had _no clue _who that was, besides the man who stood behind him, but anyways...

Joker growled. "But I wanted the _Baaaaaat_." He pulled himself up, adding another foot to his height. "Fine. HERE!"

He threw a dart straight at Dick, but there was a flash (haha) of red, and the boy found himself sitting across the room with Blaine and Terrence, who had a bloody welt on his head. Flash crouched down and gently touched Terrence's wound. The boy let out a cry and a hiss, and Flash pulled away. "Alright," he said, pulling gauze out of who-knows-where, and putting it gently over Terrence's wound. "Put some pressure on that for me, sweetie," he said to Blaine, who complied.

Flash lowered his eyes down to Dick's range (even though they couldn't be seen under his mask). "You okay, kiddo?"

"Yeah," Dick said, nodding. "And it's Dick, not kiddo."

Flash chuckled. "Alright, Dick. Stay here. I'll be back in a flash!" (haha)

Dick turned and saw Blaine sitting next to Terrence, who was lying on the floor, a tiny bit of blood gathering around his head. It mingled under the girl's fingernails as she pushed down on the dark skin. "He passed out," she said, voice tinged with worry. "I think he has a concussion..."

Before Dick could answer, he heard a loud grunt, and then saw Green Arrow being flung across to their side of the room. His back hit a pillar, which cracked. Dick bit his lip tightly. _Get up... Get up... Get up..._

Green Arrow grunted, stood, rubbed his head, and swooped down to retrieve his hat before running back at the evil clown.

Flash was running back and forth, back and forth, trying to help get the remaining people out of the Manor. The screams were dying down, but were still there.

Green Arrow flung several, well, arrows at the clown, who squirted them with a water gun. They melted in the air.

_Okay... that _apa_ gun _isn't _holding _apa_... _Dick thought.

Green Arrow rounded back and shot an arrow that burst into a net at the clown, who cackled like a banshee, then jumped out of the way at the last second. This game went on for what felt like hours. Then, Flash came in.

The clown seemed to be getting tired.

Dick watched more intently.

It wouldn't be too long now...

Then, the clown locked eyes with the boy. It was terrifying for Dick. He felt as if the clown was boring holes into his skull with an ice chisel. Suddenly, that bloody grin grew ever more wider, and the clown bounded over to the three children.

Flash and Green Arrow didn't see what he was flipping over to, since the three kids were behind a table.

Dick pressed his back deep into the pillar behind him as he willed his lungs to breath in less air. _Bruce... Batman... Batman, where are you?_

The bloody face popped into view, and Blaine screamed.

The clown lifted a- flower?- and squeezed its leaves. Acid spurted out and sunk deep into the pillar.

"No!" Flash cried, running forward, but the evil-maniac-clown-slash-spawn-of-the-devil did a back flip, kicking Flash in the jaw.

Dick heard the pillar creak. "QUICK!" he shouted at Blaine, shoving her and Terrence out of the way.

He scurried after them, but, somehow, the pillar managed to fall directly onto his leg- his _injured _one.

Dick cried out in pain, and, suddenly, there was a dark shadow by his side. Tears streaming down his cheeks at the intense pain in his leg, the blue-eyed boy looked up into the face of the frightening Batman. Beneath the mask, Bruce's face was that of worry. Grunting, he pulled the pillar up just enough for BlackHawk to steal Dick out from underneath it. Batgirl was dealing with Terrence, and BlackHawk sat back, cradling Dick in his arms.

"Stay. Put," Batman said firmly before running off to face the clown.

But Flash and Green Arrow had already caught him.

Flash beamed. "You're welcome, Bat-"

"I'm welcome that you let my kid get crushed by a pillar?" Batman growled. (No one else, besides the heroes and children, was in the room- and Joker was unconscious.)

Flash blushed. "I- We- I mean, uh... We-"

"Save it," Batman growled as he gave the unconscious villain a further headache by kicking him square in the jaw. "Just to make sure he doesn't wake up," he grunted as he made his way back over to his kids and side-kicks.

He checked on Terrence, who was waking up, and nodded to Barbara. "Concussion. Slight swelling. Take him to the Cave."

Nodding, Barbara lifted Terrence and ran off.

Alfred appeared out of thin air (again) and followed them.

Batman pulled his cowl down and took Dick from BlackHawk's arms. "Dick, Dick are you okay?"

Shivering slightly, Dick shook his head. "N-n-no! It h...h-h-hurts!"

BlackHawk winced at Dick's leg. The boy's pants had been torn by the pillar, and his stitches had been ripped open, along with the previously shut wound. It was now also swelling and turning purply-blue.

Green Arrow and Flash came over and both mirrored BlackHawk's expression when they saw the boy's wound. Blaine was shivering, pulling her knees into her chest as she clutched at the ground with blood-soaked nails.

Flash saw this and instantly had her in his arms. "Hey, little angel, it's okay..." She began to cry, and Flash held her closer. "It's okay... ssh... ssh, little angel... ssh..."

Batman looked at BlackHawk and said, "Bring me some medical thread, alcohol, a needle, and gauze. I don't want to move him just yet."

Nodding, BlackHawk disappeared.

Green Arrow knelt down where the younger hero had just been and held Dick as Batman whipped off his cape and laid it down on the floor. Dick was placed on top of it. Batman pulled his cowl back on and pulled the leg of the boy's pants up. Dick whimpered and bit his lip as Green Arrow hushed him, stroking the boy's hair. Flash was still trying to get Blaine to stop crying.

BlackHawk reappeared with the tools, and Batman set to work.

Dick felt the sting of the alcohol as Batman wiped the blood away with a small piece of cloth, now stained red. Green Arrow averted the boy's gaze from his own leg as Batman threaded the needle. He swiftly got the job done, trying to block out Dick's whimpering.

Blaine had _finally _stopped crying by the time Batman had Dick's leg all wrapped up. Flash set her in BlackHawk's arms, and the girl latched onto her 'brother'. After getting a nod from his mentor, BlackHawk took Blaine away.

Flash sat on his knees next to Green Arrow as Batman helped Dick up. The boy was shaky on one leg and tripped, crying out in pain, but Green Arrow caught him. "Be careful, Mister Dick."

Dick looked back at Green Arrow. "Mr. Queen?"

Green Arrow grinned, his nose wrinkling up as he did. "That's privileged information."

Batman pulled on his cape as he said, "Dick, meet Green Arrow, Oliver Queen, and Flash, Barry Allen."

Both heroes glared at Batman, but were instantly cut off by _the _glare. Green Arrow stood, picking up Dick as he did. "Here ya go, kid," he said, helping the boy steady himself. Dick whispered his thanks.

Batman turned and suddenly gave a loud growl. "Flash?"

The hero appeared next to his 'friend'. "Yes-"

A gloved hand hit Flash straight in the back of the head. "Ouch! WHAT?"

The clown-man was gone, and so was all of the money that had been donated to _'Saint Agatha's House for the Needy'_.

"Oh, shitakii mushrooms..." (1)

Batman growled again as he pulled Dick into his arms. "I need to take care of Terrence and Dick," he said to Arrow and Flash. "You two- just leave after the Commissioner is done with you."

On cue, there were blaring lights as sirens coming from outside, along with bolts of thunder.

Batman disappeared into the Cave, Dick in his arms. As he went down the many stairs, Dick couldn't help but let his thoughts drift back over to the frightening clown. He shivered and pulled Batman's cape around him. Batman paused at this, but then gave a tiny smirk that would have seemed like a muscle spasm to anyone who didn't know him.(2)

Dick said softly, "Who- who _was _that?"

Batman's 'smirk' was gone. "That was the Joker, my arch-nemesis."

"What's an arch-nemamist?"

Batman couldn't help but regain his smirk. "My enemy."

"Oh..."

Batman came into the Cave and set Dick down on a cold silver table next to Terrence. The boy was too shocked and tired to notice how vast and amazing the Cave was, but if he had, he would have gaped in amazement at the seemingly endless ceiling of stalactites and the large supercomputers and other equipment that littered the once-normal-cave. A waterfall could be heard from somewhere off in the distance.

Batman pulled off his cowl and had Dick change out of his pants. "He's a very, very, _very _bad man, Dick," he said as he sat down next to his newest 'son'. Alfred was cleaning Terrence's cut; Jason was changing out of his suit somewhere off in the Cave; and Barbara, already changed, was holding a snoozing Blaine in her arms. The girl would soon have to wake for a bath, though, which would _not _be fun.

"He's scary," Dick said softly, looking at his shoes.

Bruce nodded. "I know..." He gave a heavy sigh. "See, Dick, it's because of bad, scary men-"

"-And women," Jason called as he came in, "_special _part _cat _women-"

"-Jason-"

"-sorry..."

Bruce turned back to Dick. "It's because of bad, scary _people _like Joker that I don't want you and Terrence and Blaine out in the field yet-"

"But you shoulda' seen Dick!" Terrence exclaimed. "He was jumping and dodging and flipping and- ouch!"

"Master Terrence, I insist you lay still!"

"Sorry, Alfred..."

Bruce turned to Dick, an eyebrow raised. "You fought him?"

Dick shrugged. "I- I was just avoiding the stuff he threw at me... Then Green Arrow and Flash showed up, and well, then you..."

Bruce nodded. "I see..."

Blaine had woken up at Terrence's shouting. "He was really good, Bruce," she encouraged. "Even _better _with training... And if _he _gets to train, then do you think that maybe..." Her voice led off.

The billionare-slash-vigilante half-sighed and half-growled.

"Fine."

Commissioner Dent, Green Arrow, and Flash could have _sworn _that they felt the ground vibrate beneath them...

**(1) I'm not aloud to cuss, so instead of saying SH**, I say SHITAKII MUSHROOMS! (THAT IS MINE, YOU STEAL IT I KILL U STUPID COMMINUISTS!)**

**(2) People are always writing about how 'baby' Robin cuddles up in Batman's cape, so I thought I'd set that up for further chapters...**

**NOPE! NO ZUCCO IN THIS CHAPTER!  
>!<strong>

**AND YES_ Joker escaped.**

***gasp!* what will happen now, though, oh writing god Scotty1609?**

**Well, read on and find out my little minions... read on and find out... - cough, cough, sputter, gasp, cough- AAAAA!**


	7. Unapprooved Training

**OKAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY**

**Believe it or not, this IS important to the PLOT (the chapter, not my note, but my notes are AWESOME so keep reading, my little communists...)**

**ANYWHOO**

**I'm really, really, reaaaaaaaaally trying to build up the Blaine n' Dick mischeviousnessess in heres, so NO FLAMES, please... (their relationships as 'TWINS' is very important.)**

**SRRY, no Alfred, Terry, or Babs in dis CH...**

**I OWN NOTHING (except for Jason and Blaine, so technically, half of dis chapter!)**

**Don't know what else to say...**

**WARNINGS: fluff and fighting **

Alfred was off for the week, to see his family for once. It was almost the start of school, and his niece was going back to college soon, so he wanted to bid her farewell. Problem was, she lived in Texas. So, Alfred flew out to Texas, leaving Bruce alone with his three foster children. Oh, wait, I mean five, _technically_. Barbara was in Kansas, visiting her grandmother. (The only reason Barbara doesn't live with her 'Grammy' is because the old lady couldn't afford to 'keep' a teenaged girl.) Terrence was off at a friend's house for a sleepover. That left Jason, who was recovering from terribly bruised ribs (_Thaaaaaaaaaanks, Uncle Jack!_), Blaine, who was livid (to be spoken of later), and Dick, who was, as of the moment, using the gym equipment for his physical therapy.

After the news reports on Joker's attack of Wayne Manor, in his attempt to steal all of the money (which he ended up doing, no thanks to Flash and Green Arrow, in Bruce's opinion), Dick had been put back into surgery for his leg. Now, the doctor said, Dick would make a full recovery, _if _he went through physical therapy.

So, while Bruce- or rather, Batman- was out, Jason was watching with extreme curiosity as Dick hung upside-down on the newly installed trapeze rings from his feet, curling his body up, then down, up, then down, re-strengthening his injured calf. Blaine was playing with a couple of dolls as she sat on the floor next to Jason, who was flipping from History to Algebra to Dick and his acrobatic feats of terror and then to Science.

There came an anguished cry, and suddenly, Dick was falling.

It took about .5 seconds for BlackHawk-mode to kick in, and Jason caught the boy. Sweating, blinking from the shock, Dick squirmed out of Jason's arms. "Thanks..." he said softly, scrambling back up the bars.

Jason bit his lip. "Dickie, are you _sure _you're up for more? I mean, you've been at this for what, half an hour already?"

Dick was doing flips on the rings now. He paused, head facing down, legs high in the air. Blinking his baby blues at Jason, Dick tilted his head. "Why? I did this for _hours _back at the-" His face blanked, and the boy's lip quivered dangerously.

Jason immediately changed the subject. "Look, Dickie, it's almost... what? Almost midnight!" Jason exclaimed as he examined his watch. He had promised Bruce to have them in bed by eleven thirty. _Time flies by when you're having fun..._ Jason thought as he picked up his books. "C'mon, kiddos! Bedtime!"

Blaine grumbled but picked up her dolls, none the less. Jason turned to Dick, who was still doing flips. "C'mon, wonder boy."

"Wonder boy?" Blaine furrowed her brows. She grinned suddenly and snapped her fingers, obsidian eyes gleaming. "Howabout 'Boy Wonder' instead? Like, like a nick-name!"

Dick was down from the rings and gulping down some water as he- slightly- limped towards his foster-siblings. "Boy Wonder?" He tilted his head thoughtfully. "Dick, the Boy Wonder..."

Jason chuckled. "Nice. Now, onto baths, then _bed_."

Growling and groaning, the two walked off.

It took about thirty minutes for both of them to have their baths finished. Dick was lying in the black on Blaine's bed, her body pressed up against his as she read 'The Three Little Pigs' to him. But, by the time they were finished, neither was tired.

Blaine sat up, fingering her damp hair, which hung all the way down to her waist. "Not tired?" Dick asked as he sat up, his own black locks falling into his eyes. It was high time for a haircut, but neither wanted one.

Blaine shrugged. "Wanna go bug Jason?"

Dick grinned mischievously. The boy's slightly demonic behavior had only just been revealed- which was _somewhat _good, as it showed he was getting more and more used to living with his new family. His eyes flashed brightly. "Sure!"

So, quick as a snap, the two were shuffling their way down three different hallways and then into a parlor where a certain grandfather clock stood. Blaine reached forward and unlocked the door with a key hidden under the mat. She set the clock to three thirty-two, and it chimed before opening to reveal- yet another- lock. Dick retrieved the key from under the nearby vase (he was careful not to knock _this _one over- for an acrobat, Dick was rather clumsy) and just barely reached the lock on his tip-toes. Blaine didn't berate him for his height- now, knowing Dick for almost three months, the two had grown to be more like twins than younger/older siblings.

Creeping silently down the navy, stone stairs, Blaine blinked harshly in the dim lighting.

Grunts and loud _WHOOPS_, like cloth against something heavy, could be heard.

Full in her nightgown, and full in his flannel PJ's, Blaine and Dick crept forward behind a huge stalagmite that hid both of their tiny bodies from view. They saw Jason, in nothing but black sweat-shorts, his muscular body gleaming from sweat, duking it out with a punching bag. The two children just stood there, watching the older boy for a good full twenty minutes.

Jason was breathing huskily as he untapped his knuckles, reaching out for a towel to dry his face. But, as he turned, he caught sight of blue flannel and long, wet blonde locks. Rolling his eyes, Jason hung the towel around his shoulders and walked up to the stalagmite, swiftly turning-

To see nothing.

_Nothing_.

Fifty feet up, Blaine had her arms and legs wrapped around Dick's body as he clung tightly to a light fixture. How the boy had managed to climb all the way up, Blaine had no clue, but she was thankful as she giggled at Jason's fiercely confused expression.

Shaking his head, Jason began his stretches.

Dick scrambled back down the lights and pipes, Blaine clutching to his PJ's as he went. But, as they passed under the light, Jason's eyes caught sight.

"AHA!"

"AUGH!" and "WOAH!" came the two replies as Dick fell about five feet, right on top of Blaine. Jason took in a sharp breath as Dick rolled over, moaning. Blaine sat up, shaking her head, and knocked Dick's with her palm.

"Ouch!"

"Well you fell on top of me!"

Jason grabbed both kids by their hair and dragged them, squirming and whining, over to the Bat-super-computer before sitting both of them down on Bruce's coveted Slovakian leather chair. Dick was blushing fiery red, looking at his hands in his lap, while Blaine sported a paler face, twirling her hair around her fingertips as she watched her bare toes moving. Jason sighed heavily. _When did I sign up for babysitting? Oh, yeah! The day Bruce took in four other squirrely kids with AD-freakin'-HD!_

Sighing heavily, Jason crouched before the kids.

"Couldn't sleep?"

Both shrugged and said in unison, "We're not tired."

Jason grinned at the almost-twins. "You're not tired, eh?"

Dick shook his head, and Blaine said softly, "No..."

Jason knew that Bruce would kill him for it, and Alfred, too, for that manner, but he couldn't resist. Standing up straight, hearing his back crack and pop as he did so, Jason rolled his neck. "Alright... Who's up for training?"

Both kids looked incredulous. "_What_?" Dick asked as Blaine gaped, wide-eyed and open-mouthed.

"I _said_," Jason enunciated, "_who is up for training_?"

"Training?" Blaine seemed to have found her vocal cords, and she now vibrated in her seat. "Ya mean, like, to be a _superhero _like Bruce?"

Jason frowned, crossing his arms, and said in almost a whiny voice, "Heeeey... I'm a hero, too!"

"A _junior _hero," Dick affirmed, somewhat shyly.

Jason couldn't help but smile. Dick was just _too _cute!

"C'mon, kiddos. Let's see if we can't find some stuff for you to wear."

Some of Barbara's older spandex fit nicely on Blaine's immatured form, and some more spandex (that had shrunk by accident in the wash) hung a bit loosely on Dick's frail frame. Nodding at his work, Jason stood back, hands on hips. "Alright," he nodded as Blaine tied back her hair. "First lesson- blocking."

"Aw..." Blaine whined. "When do we get to _fiiiiiiight_?"

"When you're fourteen. Now, firm your feet to the ground, like as if you're digging your feet into sand." Jason grinned as Dick did a rather clumsy job. Blaine, however, was doing it almost perfectly. Jason fixed up- both youths' stands, and then continued, taking a stance himself.

"Now, when you hear people shout in karate, it's _not _to look like a cool little ninja." After getting odd looks from Dick and Blaine, Jason rolled his eyes up to the chattering bats. "Okay, _maybe _a _bit_, but really, it's to tense your body for the hit."

Jason let out a 'HYA!' as he formed a defensive stance, his hands up in fists as they crossed over his chest. Looking over at Dick and Blaine, he nodded. "You try."

Again, Blaine did stunningly while Dick floundered.

Grinning like the Joker, Jason led them through several different defensive and offensive stances. Overall, they were both outstanding- with a bit of help. Jason soon discovered that, while Blaine was excellent with the fighting stances and even a few blows that she had un-knowingly hit her older 'brother' with, Dick seemed to be much more _fluid_, easily changing from stance to stance, even if the stances themselves were rather poor.

_Screw what Bruce and Alfred say_, Jason thought_, these kids _need _to be trained..._

Turning to Dick, Jason dragged him up onto the boxing rink. Looking rather distressed, Dick said, "W-w-whaaaaaat? Am I gonna _fight _you?"

Jason pulled on a mouth-guards and some gloves. No, he wasn't going to _hurt _Dick, but he wanted the boy to be scared, to see just how his instincts made him react.

"Dn't wrby," he mumbled through the clear plastic. "Jst dbwo bwat cms do you..."

Nodding, Dick took one of the stances warily.

The bats chattering seemed to drown out the evil silence. Blaine was sitting on the edge of the rink, her hands over her eyes as he waited to hear Dick scream in pain.

But, instead, she heard Jason grunting as he strained.

Slowly, Blaine dropped her hands and gasped.

Dick was doing all sorts of flips and twists to avoid Jason. The teen swung out, and Dick would dodge, rolling or jumping away. They did this game of cat-and-mouse for almost ten minutes, and Blaine could see the perspiration on both of her 'brother's' foreheads. It slowly dripped down Dick's neck, chilling the boy to the bone.

Jason decided to end it.

Spitting out the guard, he roared and rushed at Dick.

Instead of running away, as he had done many times before, the black-haired boy pulled himself into a _perfect _offensive stance, feet apart, seemingly leaning back on his heel, while _really _his body was evenly balanced as he raised one fist, close to his chest, and another flat fist out away from his body. As Jason was about to envelop the boy into a crushing bear-hug, Dick flung his legs out in a diving twist, knocking the older over, and then vaulted off of Jason's raised knees, flipping gracefully behind his sparring partner. Jason leaned his head back and saw a sweaty, black-clad little boy wearing a proud grin.

Jason stood with a groan, hearing his bones protest. _Good God, already! I'm freaking sixteen!_ He smiled and nodded to Dick. "Good job, Dickie. I think I've got your style down."

He inclined his head to Blaine. "B. You're turn."

Rather nervously, Blaine climbed in as Dick clambered out. "Alright," Jason said, re-placing his mouth guard. "Jst dbwo bwat cms naburally..."

Blaine nodded and immediately took a fierce offensive stance. His eyes widening, Jason nodded and, Dick, desperate to be included, shouted, "BEGIN!"

Blaine cried out and rushed Jason, throwing a punch at his mid-section. Jason easily blocked it, throwing her back. But, instead of retreating to regain herself as Jason thought the young girl would do, Blaine rushed right back in, screaming as she did.

Caught off-guard, Jason took a firm punch to the gut. He moaned and thought of the blue skin on his chest. Shaking his head, he readied for another attack. Indeed, Blaine rushed him, but, instead of another all-out attack, she opted for the Grayson-approach, and tried to trip Jason. He simply jumped over her feet.

The fierce attacks and yelling went on five minutes. Blaine obviously had great stamina, as the attacks she opted for were only increasing with violence, but her aim was getting off. Jason didn't reprimand her. This was a _test_. He gave her a gut-hit, and the girl was flung back. She groaned and glared, but made no objections.

Gears churned in Blaine's head, and she understood now. It was _all _a _test_. Standing up, she took in several deep breaths before taking a defensive stance. Jason grinned and rushed her.

The next movements were a blur.

Blaine knew about a few pressure points, but not many. She knew about the one in your collar bone, though, and as Jason ran head0first towards her, she smirked.

Jason had no time to stop.

Blaine jumped off of the ropes on the edge of the rink and latched onto Jason's pressure-point. He fell instantly. Blaine grinned and bowed. Shaking his head as he sat up, Jason _swore _to _never_ go easy on the Demon-Twins ever again.

"Nice job," he said to Blaine. "But your style needs work. You're great at offensive, but defensive should always be your priority, being so... well, little."

She scowled and stuck out her tongue, chest heaving. Jason returned the favor.

No one realized that, even though the battles had been short, they had been down for hours. It was now around three thirty, and a certain _someone _was returning early from patrol, having such an easy night.

Actually, he had gotten there before the sparring even began.

But, being the odd little bat he is, Bruce (he had his cowl off, but costume on) hid in the shadows, analyzing each of Dick's moves as the boy flipped and twirled.

_He's defensive... Good... But he needs work... He can surprise the opponent easily, that's good, too... Excellent form on that pose, Richard!- OUCH! That looked like it hurt..._

Then, Blaine was up. Bruce's eyes widened at her offensive take.

_She's much stronger than she appears... Shocks the opponent... Nicely done... Good, good... Oh, crap! JASON! Not so hard... She's a bit _too _offensive, but- ah! Adda' girl, B... OUCH! I feel somewhat sorry for Jason..._

Jason was now applauding the two juniors, who were both bowing sillily. "Dick, awesome job of monkey, but you need to get to the attack a _bit _faster, but not _too _fast, mind you, or you loose the element of surprise, which you _did _have... Oh, God... You had it..." He rubbed his ribs and looked at Blaine. "You're stronger than you look, y'know, B?" She blushed. "But, still... Excellent, excellent job... Surprising, your take on attacking rather than defensive, I mean, no offense, but being a girl, and your age, they'd expect you to do the same as Dickie... You need a bit more work on balancing attacks with defense, but you'll be a great hero- someday."

The two beamed.

A gruff voice said, "I didn't know that I had approved training."

Jason didn't jump- he was too used to the bat by now- but Blaine shrieked, and Dick cried out before dashing behind Blaine.

Bruce stepped into view, trying to hide a smirk. "Nice job, Jason. You've got their styles down, and I agree with your assessment."

All three kids were- basically, shocked.

Bruce's almost-smirk disappeared to be replaced by underlined anger. "But I _never _approved training." He eyed Blaine, who was rubbing her ribs, just like how Jason had done earlier. "Much for _that _reason."

Jason moaned, "C'mon, Bruce! We all get a few bumps and scrapes, but didn't you _see _her? And _him_? He moves like... like... well, I can't describe it, but they're good! Much better than anyone could have expected, Bruce. Admit it."

Bruce's face softened when he saw Dick's and Blaine's faces of worry, frustration, and _hope_...

He sighed, ruffling up his own black hair. "You can train-" Both yelped with joy and hugged. "-BUUUUT..." They groaned. "NO field work, WHATSOEVER, _got it_?"

Dick nodded. "Boy Wonder got it!"

Bruce raised an eyebrow at Jason, who mouthed, "Later..."

Bruce approached his youngest 'children' and patted their shoulders. "On with you two, now. Alfred would kill Jason and I both for tonight."

They said in unison, "But we're not..." They were both (in unison) cut off with yawns.

Chuckling, Bruce shuffled them towards the stairs. "I'll be there to tuck you in in a minute."

They said nothing as they trooped up the stairs.

_Now, punishment..._ Bruce turned to his eldest 'son', who was looking at his feet, suddenly interested in his toenails. Bruce sighed. "They _did _do good, Jason... But, son, why go behind my back?"

"It wasn't like that!" Jason exclaimed, defending himself. "They said they couldn't sleep, and I thought, well, with all of their squirrely ADHD-ness that, well-"

"-Training would help?"

Jason squirmed under the Bat-glare. "Y-yeah..."

Bruce sighed, almost growled, and Jason flinched. "Jason, you can't just go beyond direct orders-"

"You never said they _couldn't _train!"

Bruce opened his mouth, but it snapped shut. He _had _never said they couldn't train...

He was silent, then, for a few moments, pondering what would happen next. "You'll help me train them." It was a demand, not a request.

Trying to hide a grin, Jason nodded in reply.

"Alright," Bruce said, "I've got papers that need to be filed."

"Did you deal alright without you Batgirl and BlackHawk tonight?"

Bruce smiled and kissed his son's forehead. "Yeah, but I sure do love having them there."

Jason smiled and kissed his dad's cheek. "Love you, too, dad..."

And he trooped off after the 'twins'.

Bruce abruptly slammed his head against his desk.

What the Hell was he up against now?

**AWWWWWWWWWWWWWW... Jason and Bruce bonding! (forgive me, I had to...)**

**Do you like my take on where "Boy Wonder" came from?**

**TEE HEE HEE...**

**ANYWAYS NEXT CHAPTER!**

**1. Bruce has a 'talk' with Jason and Barbara**

**2. Dick is kidnapped**

**3. Superman is PO'd at Bruce for _something_... (OF WHICH I WILL NOT SPEAAKS!)**

**4. ALL OF THE ABOVE!**


	8. Abduction

**After days of Writer's Block, who have this:**

**WARNINGS: tiny, tiny, _tiny _bit of blood, and a PMSing Superman**

**I OWN NOTHING except Jason, Blaine, Terrence, the teachers, BlackHawk, and Wraith. (so like 80% of the frickin' story. :P)**

Batman had monitor duty at the Watchtower that night. He shuffled a couple of drawings, smiling, as he kept one eye on the screens. The papers he held were actually pictures. He had finally given in- Terrence was now his own hero, Wraith. The boy was excellent at disappearing, even more so than the Bat himself. After Dick said that he was like a ghost, Terrence had played with the name. After proving himself 'worthy' of being in the Batclan, Bruce caved.

The boy's costume was all white with black boots, gloves, and mask. A large curl of smoke, silver, covered his chest and fell behind his silver belt at his waist. (No cape. He had quoted 'The Incredibles' for that one.) And, ever since Dick and Blaine had heard, they had given him several drawings of their own costume ideas.

Blaine wanted pink.

That much was blindingly obvious.

And Dick had an odd drawing. The colors were bright red, green, and yellow- with splashes of black. It was so detailed, that Bruce could have suspected that his new 'son' was either a clothing designer or had seen the suit before...

There came an aggravated voice behind him, and Batman rolled his eyes. "WHERE IS HE?"

Flash wavered at the door. "Uh... Gotta go!"

_ZOOM!_

Superman, eyes glowing red, turned and saw Batman sitting at the monitors. He crossed furiously just as the Dark Knight turned to face him. "May I help you, Kent?"

"Don't you '_Kent_' me, _Wayne_." He slammed down a magazine, which held a picture of Terrence, or rather, Wraith, and Batman. (BlackHawk and Batgirl were in the background.) Batman, pretending to be confused, looked up at Superman.

"What?"

"'_What' _he asks!" Superman exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air. "Dang it, Bruce! That kid can't be more than- what, eleven?"

"Twelve."

"OH! THAT MAKES IT SO MUCH BETTER!"

Batman glared his signature glare. "Terrence is an excellent fighter. He is a natural at the art of disappearing. He has a level one black belt and a GPA of 3.5. He is mature for his age-" (Batman was stretching it a bit.) "- and is now a vigilante." He turned back around. "So _deal_."

Breathing heavily, his fists clenched with a furious strength, Superman left the room.

Batman smirked.

It was the first day of school. Dick was in fourth grade at Gotham_ Juvenile Academy_. He shivered in his loafers as Alfred pulled him towards the main office. Blaine and Terrence were already at school- Gotham_ Academy for Young Adults_- in grades five and seven. Dick was only a fourth grader, so he had only one more year here before he would be in school with Blaine. But, by that time, Terrence would be at Gotham_ Northern Academy _with Barbara (currently grade nine) and Jason (currently grade ten).

_Confusing_... Dick thought. He had always been home-schooled, since Haley's moved around so much.

But now, he was all alone in this gigantic white-walled, brown-tiled building.

The teacher gave him his schedule:

8:30AM- Home-Room: Mr. J. Rod, Mathematics- B24

9:35AM- Mrs. P. Peterson, Science- C32

10:40AM- Ms. J. Andrews, Reading/English- C31

11:55AM- Lunch/Recess

1:00PM- Ms. D. Yates, History/Geography- B32

2:05PM- Study Hall

3:00PM- Release

*NOTE: Students that are NOT in class by 8:30AM, pencils, books, and papers ready, are TARDY.

Dick looked up at the clock, which read: 8:15.

He turned to Alfred, who gave him an encouraging smile and a pat on the back. "Go on, now, Master Dick. I shall be here around three o'clock to pick you up."

Nodding, Dick followed a flow of students down the hall.

After a confusing fifteen minutes, Dick found himself in Math. He set his Superman backpack down under his desk after pulling out his pencils, eraser, papers, pens, highlighter, and pencil sharpener. The other kids snickered at his 'preppiness'. Dick's ears turned bright red, and he let his bangs fall into his face.

The bell rang, and Mr. Rod stood. He was a young man, maybe early thirties, and seemed to be middle eastern. He had a beard, no mustache, and a bald head with busy eyebrows and twinkling, friendly brow eyes. "Alrighty," he grinned, rubbing his hands together. "We're gonna take roll differently than most teachers do it- but, first off, I'm Mr. Rod, but you can call me Mr. R, or Mr. J, or Mr. Joseph. I really have no preference." Leaning back onto his desk, he smiled at each student. "Now, I'm a fun teacher, as long as you're on my good list. Every day, I try to interact with my students, ask them about their family, friends, what they like to do, just to get to know them.

"I'll start. My name is Joseph Rod. My parents were both born in the Middle East, but emigrated her when I was a few months old. My favorite color is blue, I like soccer, I have two dogs- Dana and Donna- two Chows, and I am thirty-two years old."

He pulled a list out and called on the students. Each student said where their parents were from, where they were born, their age, favorite color, and sport or animal.

Dick counted. There were fifteen students in his class.

Mr. R's voice rang out. "Richard Grayson?"

Dick gulped and stood, his knuckles flexing and throat going dry. But Mr. R's smile encouraged him. "My... My name is Dick... Or at least, that's what my p- friends call me..." Mr. R watched closely as Dick's eyebrows furrowed. This was an... unusual student... "I'm eight-" (There were snickers- most kids were already nine, or even ten.) "- and my favorite colors are red and yellow... I- I like gymnastics-" more snickers "-an-and... my p-" He froze, tears coming to his eyes. "They were from Romania..."

He sat quickly, trying to disappear as the kids whispered, "_Were_?" and "_Why can't he say _parents?"

Mr. R held up a silencing hand, then smiled at Dick. "Dick, since your parents-" the boy visibly tensed "-were-" he sniffled "-from Romania, can you speak Romanian?"

Dick nodded. "_Eu pot vorbi fluent romanesti_." At his classmate's confused looks, Dick repeated, "I can speak Romanian fluently."

Smiling, Mr. R went on with the list.

Dick's day went... okay. He decided that Mr. R was his favorite teacher. Mrs. Peterson was an old, grouchy woman, almost eighty, and she instantly hated Dick, because he knew all of the answers to her pop quiz. Yes, a pop quiz on the first day of _fourth grade_. She smelt like cats... Ms. Andrews was his other favorite- she gave out cookies, even though their class was just before lunch.

Lunch.

Dick hated it.

He sat all alone. Everyone seemed to already know everyone else, and no one approached him.

He finished the leftover salmon quickly, then went and sat outside on the swings for the remainder of lunch.

His day did _not _look up from there.

Ms. Yates _hated _him.

She called on him during class, making him sit up straighter, and answer all of the questions, and scowled at him, and got onto him for day-dreaming.

Study Hall was terrible, too.

See, Dick may have been home-schooled, but the boy was a genius. He had all of his homework finished, so he went to drawing.

Who did he draw?

Batman, of course.

Then, two mean boys came up to him. They were both fat, not to be rude, they just were. Both had red hair and freckles, but one had green eyes while the other had blue. They must have been twins, Dick realized.

The blue-eyed one snatched his picture and laughed, handing it to his brother. "Hey, Timmy! Lookie at what shortie's been drawin'!"

Timmy laughed. "Stupid! Everyone knows Batman isn't a _real _hero! He doesn't even have powers!" Timmy glowered at Dick and handed the picture back to his brother. "Here ya' go, Tommy."

_Wow_, Dick thought. _Their parents were creative..._

Then, Tommy spat on the picture and ripped it.

Dick's eyes filled with tears. He was going to give that to Bruce! But now he couldn't.

And the teacher hadn't even seen them!

By the time Dick left the school, he was very, _very _upset.

His day would _not _be getting any better...

From behind the bushes, the two black-clad goons were watching Dick Grayson sulk by himself- a good ways out of the teachers' view. He kicked at loose pebbles on the stone walkway that led to the crowded playground.

The first goon- a fat, yet muscular Black man- turned to the other. "Alright, Bones. You get the kid, and I'll get the car."

Nodding, Bones ran off.

Dick crouched down and picked up a rock. He took it and threw it as far as he could, grunting when it hit the swing set. Setting down his pack, he bent down to pick up another, but froze when he saw two large black shoes coming at him. He gasped and gripped the rock tightly as he swirled around to see- "Bruce!"

Bruce smiled. "Hey, Boy Wonder. I came instead of Alfred, after getting off _work _early." Dick nodded knowingly. "Alfred had to go get Terrence and Blaine, anyways. The schools changed their get-off time this year to 2:45, so he was going to be late getting you, anyways."

He put a hand on Dick's shoulder. "C'mon. Let's go."

Nodding, Dick followed him.

They got to the car- another Porsche (1)- and strapped in. Suddenly, Dick gasped. Bruce's head snapped over. "Dick, what's wrong?"

Dick unbuckled his seat. "I forgot my backpack on the playground!"

Bruce smiled. "Alright. Let's go-"

"Naw, I got it."

"You sure?"

Dick nodded as he sprinted from the car. Bruce, smiling, shook his head and turned up the music.

Dick ran around the corner of the school-

And ran head-first into the arms of a big, bald white-skinned man.

"AUGH! LET ME-"

A hand slapped tape over his mouth, and Dick screamed in his throat. But, something hard and heavy hit his head, making everything in the boy's line of sight go black...

Bruce eyed the clock and jostled his leg. Four minutes. Yeah, that's not very long, but to get a _backpack_?

He got out of the car and jogged over to the playground. The kids had been shuffled away ('You're not allowed to play after school!' some batty old teacher had yelled.), and now, the desolate place looked sad.

Bruce's eyes widened and he gasped when he saw the backpack, sitting there, unmoved.

Frantically, the Dark Knight/Daddy-mode kicked in, and Bruce glared at the ground, looking for clues.

His voice caught in his throat when he saw a tiny bit of blood on the stones and grass.

Barbara and Jason groaned together. "Seriously?" the boy snapped. "Homework, on the _first _frickin' _day_?"

Barbara moaned, continuing to do her Algebra. "I _know_, right?"

Alfred smiled, his back turned, at his charges. He pulled some cookies out of the oven and set the pan on the marble bar, in front of the children. "They are hot, Miss Barbara and Master Jason."

Jason burned his tongue on the chocolate as Barbara snorted milk at him.

Blaine and Terrence were upstairs, doing who-knows-what, and Alfred sent Barbara off to get them. They would be mad if they missed out on cookies. _Especially _Alfred's cookies.

Jason continued his Biology (AP- lucky him...) as Alfred washed some dishes.

Just then, Jason's cell-phone rang. He pulled it out. The screen read: _EMERGENCY LINE_.

He bit back a swear (Alfred was in the room!) and put the Smart Phone to his ear. "Batman?"

Alfred looked up at this.

Jason's eyes widened. "What?" He dropped his pencil on the floor. It sounded like a huge weight on glass in the silence.

Jason listened for a moment, then _did _swear, but Alfred, worried, did not reprimand him. The old man only watched as Jason's eyes flashed from fear to worry to fury. "Batgirl, Wraith, and BlackHawk are en route."

He stood to go, handing Alfred the phone.

Alfred spoke clearly into it.

Alfred: Master Bruce?

Batman: (in his usual gravely voice) _Alfred. Dick's been kidnapped._

Alfred practically had a heart attack.

Alfred: Pardon?

Batman: _Yes, kidnapped. By Zucco, I presume. Dick saw him, he told Dent about him. Dent's here now, and he's about to call the house phone. He's going to want Bruce, who is-_

Alfred: Currently out of state?

Batman: *smirk* _Right. He'll be back at 10PM, a nervous wreck._

The four foster-children thundered down the stairs, three of them pulling their clothes off and costumes and masks on. "Alfred!' Jason shouted as he turned to the parlor. "We're taking the Batmobile!"

Bruce: _NO YOU'RE NOT!_

Jason scowled and growled. "We'll take the bikes..."

**GASP!  
>Okay, I kno, not my best, but I'm tired. SO LEAVE ME ALONE, STUPID COMMUNISTS!<strong>

**This is a multi-chapter chapter (wierd) and will be anywhere from 3-5 CH long.**

**The JL with MOST LIKELY not be involved in the next few chapters, I just put in the Watchtower/Superman/Batman/Wraith thingie to introduce Terrence's new persona.**

**SO SMILES!**

**Reviews= nxt chapter**

**no reviews= cancellation. :)**


	9. Abduction II

**After a long while of Writer's Block (grumble, grumble, mumble, grumble) HERE IS CHAPTER NINE!**

**YAY!**

**Warnings: blood, P.O.'d BlackHawk, terrible 'Jewrsy' accents**

***I own nothing except for BlackHawk, Jason, Terrence, Wraith, and Blaine.***

The first thing he noticed when he woke up was that his head hurt.

Then, he noticed that ropes were tying his hands (rather painfully) behind his back. They were frayed and dug into his skin. He sat on a hard floor, and he had a blindfold on. His back and hands were up against a wall, propping the boy up.

_Okay... Think, Grayson! You can do this... Okay, Bruce taught me to play dead until I can figure out what's going on around me... Alright. Let's just do that then..._

Dick didn't move his head from its spot on his chest, nor did he move to make his hands more comfortable. Instead, he craned his ears to listen. There were two people in the room. They were both large men, Dick realized, after he heard them speak.

"D'ya, Bones, da' boss's gonna be 'ere in a min'!"

"Really? Oh Gawd, he creeps me out, Flem!"

_Flem? Like, saliva phlegm? Nasty..._

The man spat.

_Oh. Maybe that's how he got his name._

"Yeah... I mean, wuz' up wid dat 'air? I mean, a green afro? Wud da' 'ell is dat?"

There came a sudden cackling from outside wherever-in-the-world they were, and the men shifted, making a great deal of noise with their-

_Guns..._

Dick felt sweat run down his face.

_Okay, _don't _panic... That's the last thing we need..._

There came another howl of laughter, and into the room skipped another person.

"Ooh... Why, hello, widdle Wayne!"

_Okay. Maybe panic is appropriate for this!_

It was a shocker to see Batman out and about at daytime.

It was amazing, a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see Batman, Batgirl, BlackHawk, and the new little vigilante, Wraith, out and about all at once at mid-day.

In his gravely voice, Batman addressed Commissioner Dent. "Did anyone see anything?"

Dent grumbled. "No. We got a call from one of the teachers. She came out, seeing the backpack, and then she saw the blood. We found a busted beer-bottle behind the school-" the fat man pointed towards a dumpster "-and it had traces of blood on it. We got a call that Dick Grayson never made it home, but we need confirmation that the blood is his. The lab'll have the details in a minute or two."

Batman nodded gruffly and inspected the crime scene with BlackHawk. The younger hero took out a wrist-computer and scanned the little left-over blood that was there. In about five seconds, the screen beeped. _"Blood. O positive. Red Cell count- five thousand. White Cell count- fifty. Blood Confirmation- Richard John Grayson."_

Dent stared, mouth open, at BlackHawk. "Wow. We need one of those for the force."

Batgirl giggled. "Yeah. BlackHawk is basically beast at all electronics. He's a maniac."

Dent cocked an eyebrow. "Beast?"

"Expert," Wraith corrected.

Dent smirked at the brown-skinned boy. "So... you're the famous Wraith, eh?"

The boy flushed lightly, looking away. "Yeah..."

Batgirl threw an arm around her partner's shoulder. "Yup! This is Wraith! The best magician on earth!"

"Magician?" Dent cocked an eyebrow.

Batgirl giggled and nodded as Wraith easily undid her choker-hold. "He's an awesome dissapearer, but that's not a word, so I say magician."

Dent turned to speak to Wraith. "Is that right- Woah! Where'd he go?"

There came a tapping on Dent's shoulder, and he jumped about a foot before turning with his taser out and revving up. Wraith chuckled. "Sorry."

Dent nodded, replacing his tazer. "Y-yeah... Just- just don't do that, 'K kid?"

Wraith and Batgirl giggled together as Batman and BlackHawk walked up. "We found this inside the boy's bag," Batman said, holding up a playing card. On it's front was a picture of a-

Batgirl gasped. "Oh, no..."

The man picked up Dick by his throat and pinned him to the wall, ripping off his blindfold. Dick tried to scream at the face- pure white skin, with wild yellow eyes and tiny, pin-prick pupils, and a bloody, crackly smile that stretched from ear-to-ear.

"'Ello, Boyo!" Joker howled in a British voice. He cackled again and dropped Dick to the floor. The boy immediately thanked God for the air that filled his lungs as he coughed and gasped.

Joker scowled. "Eh... You're a cute kid, but I've already got a play-toy. Her name's Harls! Harley Quinn, like Harlequin! Get it, eh, eh, EH?" He smirked and pulled on his purple suit-jacket. He scowled when Dick didn't answer.

Using his white, dirty, bare foot, Joker pressed down on Dick's throat. "Get... It?" he growled.

Dick choked, "I- I g-g-get it..."

Joker cackled again and let up.

Dick pulled himself up, leaning his shoulders forward as he rasped for air again. He wound _definitely _have a bruise on his throat for a couple of days...

"Why- why did you kidnap me?" he managed to say, though his voice cracked when he said, 'kidnap'. He had never been kidnapped before, and it was (so far) a very frightening experience. Especially with all of the stories Jason had told him about Joker...

The clown grinned and began to kick up his heels as he skipped in a circle around Dick. "Well, boyo, I want _money_! And your Daddy-"

"He's _not _my _taticul_..." Dick growled before he could stop himself.

Joker suddenly had his face inches from Dick's, a knife pressed against the boy's throat, drawing the tiniest trickle of blood possible. The boy flinched as Joker spoke in a deathly low voice. "Don't... interrupt... Boyo..."

He pulled away, instantly jumping around, all happy in a depraved way again. "Well, your _not-_Taticul, or _whatever _you said, is the third richest man in the world!" Joker let out a laugh that was somewhere in between a cry of joy and a hyena cackle. "Sooooo... He'll pay _big _to get you back alive!"

Dick flinched. "He- he won't pay you _anything_! You _monstrul_!"

Joker cocked an eyebrow and froze, watching Dick closely. "Seriously, boyo, what the heck are you saying?"

"Romanian..." Dick whispered softly.

Joker laughed. "Oh! So not-Daddy taught you that?"

"No!" Dick snapped. "My pa-" He froze. A tear threatened to boil over, and Joker frowned.

"Your _parents_?"

Dick bit his lip to keep from crying. He drew blood, but tried to ignore it.

Joker rolled his eyes. "Oh, tough up, boyo! I lost my parents, too!" He smiled evilly. "Then again, _I _killed them, so it may be a bit different of a situation, but _anyways_..."

Dick was lost in his thoughts, though.

_He killed his own _parentii_? What- what will he do to _me_?_

Joker, as if reading the boy's thoughts, said, "Oh, don't worry, I won't hurt you _too _badly..."

And with that and a hyena laugh, Joker left the room.

Bruce, his cowl down, scowled as he watched the articles scroll down the screen of the Bat-super-computer, as Terrence had so-creatively named it. They had been at this for hours, and it was now sundown. _Joker... Joker... Joker... HA!_

He sat up, and Jason, still suited up, crossed over and put a hand on his 'father's' shoulder. "What did you find?"

Alfred came down the stone stairs just then, Blaine on his heels as she tried to snatch a cookie from the platter he held.

"Joker broke out of Arkham just yesterday. But why wasn't Batman notified?" Bruce's voice faded off as he thought. "And it wasn't in any papers, either..." He scowled and pounded his fist on the table. "_Someone _is trying to keep this quiet."

Terrence, two cookies in his mouth like a chipmunk, dashed over. "Dub bwe bdo bder Dokert dis?"

Bruce eyed him, and Barbara translated. "But we know where Joker is?"

Bruce growled in his throat as he turned to the screen. "No... not yet, at least." He stood, pulling up his cowl. "But I know how to find out..."

Barbara became Batgirl and Terrence, Wraith, but Batman turned, holding up a hand. "You two aren't coming."

"WHAT?" they yelled in unison. Barbara crossed her arms over her bat insignia.

"And why _not_?"

Batman didn't say. Batgirl grumbled under her breath and sat down in Bruce's chair. Batman got into the Batmobile and called to Jason. "C'mon, BlackHawk."

Terrence yelped, "HEY! Why does _he _get to go?"

"'Cause he's sixteen," Batman said. "When you're sixteen, you can come, too."

Without further objections, the two drove off into the the sunset.

The man, fat with a five-o'clock shadow, screamed as BlackHawk held onto his shirt collar loosely, leaning him over the edge of a building.

Batman loomed in the background, trying desperately not to chuckle.

BlackHawk lowered his face to the mobster's and growled, "Where... Is... Joker?"

"I-I-I dunno!" he wailed. "H-honest!"

BlackHawk loosened his grip, and the man screamed again. "I DUNNO!"

The teen's grip loosened further, and Batman tensed. Any further and DuVual would fall five feet to his death.

"ALRIGHT!" he screamed. "F-FREDDY MCNASH! HE KNOWS PEOPLE! BUT I DON'T! HONEST!"

Seeing he would get no more info, BlackHawk dragged DuVual back onto the roof before knocking him out cold with a steel-toed kick to the temple.

"You're getting better," Batman said with a smirk.

BlackHawk grinned. "I'm learning from the best!"

BlackHawk typed on his wrist-top Holo-computer, scowling as he and Batman sat in the Batmobile in the shadows. It was now 11PM, and the moon was high and full. "Freddy McNash... Freddy McNash..." His eyes widened behind his mask, and BlackHawk gave an excited whoop. "Blackgate Prison! We can interrogate him there!"

Not even taking a breath, Batman drove off with the Batmobile howling in the night.

Dick whimpered as he pulled on his ropes. Flem and Bones had left, leaving him alone in the room. It looked like an abandoned prison cell, with three concrete, lead-enforced walls and a steel door, with bars for a tiny window at the top. The ground was cold and had stains everywhere. There was a tiny cot in the corner, and a broken toilet and sink at the opposite wall.

The ropes cut into his tiny wrists, scraping off the outer layer of skin. With another whimper, they were off. Dick inspected his wrists. They had _major _rope-burn, and were bleeding lightly. He remembered what Bruce told him.

"_Try to clean your wounds as soon as possible to avoid infection."_

_Jason had pitched in, too._

"_And make sure to wrap them with whatever you have- gauze, your shirt, your cape- when you two are official heroes, that is..."_

Dick looked at the sink and crossed to it uneasily. His head throbbed, and he pulled his fingers up to it, feeling dried blood. _Great. I probably have a concussion, too!_

He turned the knobs on the sink, but no water came out. _Alright. Cleaning is out of the options... _Taking off his white dress-shirt, Dick saw there were tiny flecks of blood on it's back. Scowling, his nose crinkled up, Dick tried to tear off the sleeves. He scowled as they tore only a tiny bit. _C'mon, Grayson! You're strong..._

Both sleeves came off, and Dick wrapped them tightly- but not _too _tightly, as not to cut off his circulation- around his wrists.

After surveying his work, Dick slowly made his way around the room.

Alberto, a magician and escape artist, had taught Dick much about escaping. First, he needed to check all of the walls... Dick ran his tiny fingers over all of the tiny cracks and crevasses. None of them were weak enough to allow for digging and escape _Okay... What next?_

He went over to the door, ready to check the hinges, but he groaned as he realized they were on the outside of the door. _Alright... The bars?_

Being the little monkey he was, Dick easily jumped up and grabbed the bars, digging his bare feet into the steel door- _Rece! (Cold!)_- and clambered up. Wrapping his tiny fists around two bars, setting his feet firmly onto the door, Dick pulled, grunting and groaning at the effort. But the bars didn't budge.

Dick jumped down, and dizziness swooped over him.

"Okaaaay... New plan. Sleep."

And the boy curled up onto the mat, shivering as his arms grew goosebumps. _It would be nice to have sleeves just about now..._

And soon, being weary, scared, and cold, the boy drifted off into an uneasy sleep...

Joker scowled as he faced Zucco. "Thanks, but no thanks, old man! I don't wanna have 'ta share my money..."

Zucco rolled his eyes. "You don't understand, do you?"

Joker frowned, his eyebrows furrowing. "C'mon, you _have _to want the money, right?"

Zucco groaned. "You really _are _an idiot."

Joker snarled and drew his knife. "_Don't _call me an idiot..."

Zucco pulled a gun and pointed it at Joker's head. This seemed to calm the clown a bit. "Listen, _Joker_, I don't want any money. At the dealing, I want you to grab the cash for yourself, then kill the boy."

Joker snickered. "Why?"

Zucco grumbled. "What do you mean, _why_?"

Joker crossed his arms. "Why should I kill the kid?"

"Be_cause_," Zucco cocked the gun and pressed it against Joker's temple, "if you _don't _kill the kid, _I'll _kill him, and then... _you_..."

Joker gulped and brushed the gun away. "Fine!..."

Awkward silence...

"But I get the cash!"

**Oh, don't you just LOVE Joker... *insert creepy fangurl sigh here***

**ANYWAYS!**

**OH NO! Will Batman save Dick in time? Will Jooker get his coveted money? Will McNash even give up any information?**

**READ ON TO FIND OUT!**

**and while you're at it...**

**(downwards arrow)**

**Pwease?**

**if u do, u get Alfred's e-cookies!**


	10. Abduction III

**THE FINAL CHAPTER OF DICK"S KIDNAPPING!**

**please, forgive me for any mistakes, i am sleep-deprived.**

**No joke.**

**I OWN NOTHING (except Wraith, Terrence, Jason, BlackHawk, and Blaine. :) )**

**WARNINGS: Blood, *GORE* (do not read if squeamish about fire-pokers), and protective family members. OH YEAH! deranged clown. :)**

Batman loomed over McNash. The man was white, fat, had a long beard that stretched down over his orange jumper, and had holes in his ears from his plugs. "I dunno were da' Joker is!" he said, a bit more colorfully, mind you. "And even if I did, why da' 'ell would I tell you?"

Batman looked over to the security guards who stood in the corner- Steve. (haha. CH. 4) The man had worked there for a few years, so he knew the signal. Turning to the corner, he plugged his ears. Everyone behind the one-way glass did the same.

In one swift movement, Batman had McNash pinned to the wall, his hand shoving up and inward on the man's throat. BlackHawk loomed in the back, his grip on a bat-a-rang looking deathly.

Eyes wide, McNash gave in. "ALRIGHT! ALRIGHT! I- I don't know where da' Joker is _now_, but I can tell you where he _used _ta' be!"

Bruce wanted to _run _to the Commissioner's office. It was past midnight, and Bruce Wayne had _supposed _to be there by 10PM. Now, the clock was nearing 12:35AM.

But he had to get all gussied up. He was a _billionaire _after all, and if his plane was delayed, he would still be dressed from his day. So, in one of his expensive suits, his hair slicked back, Bruce got into his Porsche and revved off into the night.

Dent sat back and rubbed his weary eyes, as if that would help his headache go away.

Almost _ten hours _had gone by, and _nothing _from the kidnappers had shown up- at the school, the police station, the Wayne residence.

And now, the blood from the lab was in. It was _definitely _Richard Grayson's. So now, they were dealing with a kidnapper that wasn't afraid to hurt his victim- the 8-year-old ward of Gotham's richest man.

_Great_...

No pressure _there_...

Suddenly, a very worry-faced Bruce Wayne burst into the brightly lit office. His eyes were wild as he ran up to Dent.

"Commissioner Dent, I just heard about Dick- oh my God- my plane was delayed and by the time I got here I-"

"Mister Wayne," Dent interrupted, "please, sit."

Bruce did. He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. He was laying it on _thick_, but hey- he _was _worried.

Opening his navy eyes, Bruce spoke slowly. "Commissioner Dent, can you explain to me just _how _this happened?" He didn't try to mask the anger in his voice.

Gulping, Dent began. "You see, Richard was waiting for his ride at school, when..."

Wraith grumbled as he sifted through the waist-high garbage. "Of _course_, _I _get put on digging through Joker's garbage for clues!"

Standing up to her full height, Batgirl grinned cheekily from him across the warehouse. Why the overflowing dumpster was _in _the warehouse, she had no clue. "You're a rookie, kid. Get used to it."

BlackHawk swooped into the room. "Did you all find anything?"

Wraith exclaimed, "_Yeaaaaah_... I found out that Joker likes Chinese food! Seriously, he hasn't been here for- what?- five months? Why is this place so important?"

"Be_cause_," BlackHawk explained while he rifled through a file-drawer, "we need to find some clues on _where _he might have gone next or _who _knows where he is..."

Batgirl suddenly gave a whoop and held up a photo. On it was the Joker, kissing the cheek of a very skinny, very voluptuous woman. She had bright green eyes, and big red lips. "The back says _Dr. Harleen Quinzel_. I bet _she _can give us some info on the bast-"

"Barb," Terrence warned. "Do I need to ask Alfred to wash your mouth out with soap?"

Sticking out her tongue at him, Batgirl dashed over to BlackHawk. Using his wrist-scanner, the teen looked up everything he could on this 'Doctor Harleen Quinzel'.

"It's kinda' a cliché name, ain't it?" Terrence asked, climbing out of the dumpster. "I mean, _Harleen_, like _Harley _and _Quinzel _like _Quinn_... This girl could be _Harley Quinn_!"

BlackHawk mocked shock. "_Really_?"

Terrence, not getting it, nodded excitedly. "See? I'm already a great detective!"

The two older heroes just rolled their eyes.

"Here!" BlackHawk exclaimed, opening up a file. "Let's see... Harleen Quinzel... twenty-four... used to be model... psychiatrist... -Wait, how the heck do you go from model to psychiatrist? Whatever..." He skimmed over the files, then grinned. "Harleen Quinzel lives at seventeen-fourteen Mockingbird Drive in Gotham!"

BlackHawk mounted his bike, a sleek black motorcycle with bright white wheels, and revved it up before 'flying' off into the distance.

Grumbling, Wraith climbed into Batgirl's side cart. "Hey," she said as she drove off, "I don't like it, either. You _totally _cramp my style!"

He woke up hungry. His stomach was so empty, that he wanted to puke. "Ugh..." the boy moaned as he sat up, rubbing his lower back. "Bruce's beds are _much _comfier."

Blinking harshly, Dick saw that there was a lot of light bleeding in from the hallway. He stretched and stood before doing a few stretches. _Gotta keep fit if I'm gonna escape!_

After doing several push-ups and crunches, the boy practiced several back-flips and front-flips. But he regretted it soon. Now, he was thirsty, and the sink didn't have any water.

Weren't they going to give him any food?

As if on cue, the door opened. In stepped the evil clown, holding a pair of rusty scissors. Dick gasped inwardly and scurried up against the wall. Joker pinned him to it with his foot. "Aw... Don't worry, Boyo! I'm just gonna get a piece of- ah!" he exclaimed as he snipped a long piece of dirty black hair from Dick's head. He ruffled the boy's hair, then looked down at the scissors, his foot still on Dick's throat, pinning him to the wall.

"Ya _know_..." he drawled, "it might be more convincing to get a bit 'o _blood _with the hair, Boyo... Wadda 'ya think?"

At Dick's scared expression, Joker howled with laughter. Then, quick as a snap, he sliced the rigid scissors across Dick's cheek, making a thin but long slash from his earlobe to the corner of the boy's lip. Too shocked to cry out at the stinging, searing pain, Dick only looked up into Joker's eyes fearfully as the clown brushed the hair into the blood on the scissors. "Alrighty! Now, Boyo, I'm gonna let ma' friend, Harley-boo, play with 'ya for a coupl'a minutes, okay?"

And he left.

Then, in came a woman dressed up as- well, a Harlequin. A very vixen-y Harlequin.

She held a sledgehammer in her hand. "Let's make showr you can'a ged out, righty, bubba?"

Laughing, she brought the hammer down right where Dick's ankle was.

_Was_, being the key-term there.

_Now, _it was on Harley's nose.

She screamed as blood spurted from the broken appendage. (Is a nose an appendage?) She glared at Dick, blood splattering all over her costume. He could hardly understand what she said, with her 'Jewrsy' accent _and _a bloody nose, but he knew it wasn't nice.

Then, Dick saw that the door was open _just _a crack.

He bolted for it, but Harley was right behind him.

Just as he reached it, the door slammed shut. "_Nu_!" the boy screamed and began to pound it with his tiny fists.

Harley chuckled as she cocked her hip out. "Well 'den, Boyo... Ye'd ain't getting' oubt any twime swoon!"

Dick looked up at her, his fear replaced by annoyance.

She was taller than him, and she probably weighed more... Could he take her?

"_When your opponent has the weight _and _height advantage, you need to use your size to your advantage. Jump about, annoy them, even. Dodge, throw things, try to knock them out with long-distance attacks. Then again, if you have nothing to throw, you can always go your acrobatic way, Dickie, and do what you did to Jason."_

_Jason called over the chittering of bats, "I HEARD THAT!"_

_Bruce chuckled, then got into a fighting stance. "Alright, Dickie, come at me."_

"Come at me, Boyo!" Harley taunted, sticking out her cherry-red tongue. "Come _on_, Boyo! You can't take me-AAUGH!"

Dick _did _go at her- he ran and jumped off of her stomach, using his feet to launch himself towards the door. Grabbing onto the bars from behind his back, Dick grinned as Harley stumbled and regained her balance. Then, glaring, blood still coming from her nose, she came at him with two heavy fists. "Alright, Boyo! You asked for it-"

But he didn't let her finish. Propelling himself off of the door, Dick kicked Harley square in the jaw. She fell, and a _crack _resounded when her head hit the ground.

Dick gasped, eyes wide. He hadn't meant to _kill _her...

But she had a pulse.

_Thank you, God! _The little boy thought.

But... _Now _what was he supposed to do?

The house was tiny, like those old run-down farm houses you see on the side of the highway between Oklahoma and Texas that have been there like for-frickin'-ever! It smelt too much like cherry blossoms and mildew, and it had paisley curtains and carpets.

BlackHawk, Batgirl, and Wraith had called Alfred (he made them check in every two hours when they weren't with Bruce, anyways) and told them about Harley. The old butler sounded worried when heard about Joker and Harley. Blaine had begged for them to come pick her up to help, but Barbara had just reminded her "You're too little, angel, maybe next time."

"Good job shutting her up," BlackHawk said with a grin as he rifled through a pile of the _many _piles of papers laying around the kitchen.

Batgirl rolled her eyes. "You just gotta treat her like she's a princess-"

"Which she is. And, sometimes, not in a good way."

Batgirl rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Look who's talking, Mr. Ego."

BlackHawk blushed. "I do _not _have an ego!"

"At the Galas, yes, you do. And a girl strapped to each hip."

"What about Bruce?"

Batgirl rolled her eyes. "_That _is different."

"HOW!"

"'Cause Bruce's got game. You've got... lame."

Grumbling, BlackHawk went back to the papers.

After almost an hour, they still had nothing. The two grumbled as they shifted all of the papers away. Batgirl suddenly cocked a brow. "Wait- Where's-"

Wraith appeared behind her.

"OH GOD!" She jumped out of her seat. "DON'T DO THAT!"

Wraith giggled. "Right. Anyways," he crossed to BlackHawk, handing him a file, "lookie what I've got!"

BlackHawk read over the papers, then grinned at the boy before him. "Good job, Terry... This _might _just work..."

Harley woke up with a grunt and saw that she was in her and Joker's bed. Joker lounged next to her, flipping through PEOPLE's magazine. "Wa?" she asked, rubbing her nose. "Ouch!"

Joker rolled his eyes. "_Really_, Harls, you let the kid break yer nose?"

"Its nobt blike I bmet tbwo!"

Joker just cackled at her. "Oh, well. I taught the kid a lesson! _No one _touches _my _Harls!"

Harley grinned. "Tanks, Bmista' Jba!"

Bruce paced at the police station, waiting anxiously for one of three things:

1) an update from the kids

2) an update from Alfred

3) a package or letter from the Joker

Bruce kept thinking about Dick- such a small, quiet little boy when he had first come to the Mansion. Now, he was still small, yes, but his little trouble-maker, high-spirited outlook had just started to come out. Sure, it drove Bruce and Alfred over the edge sometimes, and sure, the kid had only been there for a few months, but he was family. And you _don't _want to get on the bad side of the Bad-Family, that's one thing _every _Gotham criminal should know.

Or _would _know by the time Batman was finished with Joker...

A female cop suddenly walked into the room. "Sir!" she shouted at Bruce, walking over casually (she must not have been on the 'Grayson case'). "This just came in for you."

She handed him a large manilla folder. It bulged a bit, showing that there was indeed something of substance inside. Swallowing, Bruce nodded with a dull, fake smile. "Thank you."

She nodded, and Bruce ran off to the Commissioner's office.

He bounded in, and Dent stood when he saw the package. "He sent somethin'?"

Nodding, Bruce sat on the other side of the desk.

So slowly that it was physically painful, Bruce opened the folder and let the contents fall out onto the desk.

First, there was a photo of a little boy with dark black hair on a cot, rolled up into a ball. His shirt sleeves were ripped off and wrapped around his wrists, and a bit of blood could be seen. You couldn't tell whether the boy was asleep or awake.

What also fell out was a darkly-tinged black baggie. Slowly, the Commissioner opened it. Looking in, he turned pale before tumping out a long lock of black hair, soaked in dark red.

"Dick..." Bruce hissed.

There was also a note. On it read:

_Dearest Mr. Wayne;_

_You may have noticed the lack of your youngest ward, Richard 'Dick' Grayson._

_Well, you see, I have noticed the lack of money in my bank account!_

_You, only you, with five million dollars, at this location at 3AM: 1456, Westover Docks_

_Sharp._

_Dearest Wishes,_

_Uncle Jack and Auntie Harls_

Dent's eyes grew wide as he looked at the clock. "It's two-thirty! We need to go- NOW!"

First thing he noticed when he woke up for the third time was that he was sitting in something sticky and wet.

His eyes fluttered open to reveal a bit of blood on his nose, cheek, and lips.

Dick tried, in vain, to remember what had happened...

After he knocked out Harley, Joker came in. He was _furious_. He had something... What was it?... It was long and metal and sharp at one end- oh! A fire-poker...

A fire-poker?

Dick noticed that his right hand felt like it was on fire. He tested his neck and back to see if they were damaged and, after deciding that they weren't broken, he turned to see his hand- and screamed.

The fire-poker stuck out both ends of the boy's scrawny, pale hand.

Dick suddenly felt vertigo wash over his body, and he puked on the floor.

Then, he puked again after seeing that he was sitting in blood.

"A-Alright, Grayson," he said, trying to calm himself. "Just- just find out what h-h-hurts..."

Well, his hand for one. The pain was so searing, so excruciating, throbbing up his whole arm, all the way to his shoulder and pecs. His left foot hurt, too, and he realized that Joker had stabbed it. _Great... Now I can't write or walk! Or fight... Crap..._

Could he at least stand?

Maybe, if he got out that poker...

Dick looked at it, his eyes reflecting his soul perfectly. He almost puked again as he saw the rust mixing with dark blood. "Alright... Just- just pull."

Shutting his eyes tightly, Dick pulled.

"!"

Bruce was at the sight- an old, abandoned jail on the edge of Gotham Harbor. Several unmarked Pintos- yes, _Pintos_, rusty old hunch-backed ones (for camouflage, of sorts)- were all around him, hiding cops with their guns.

His large hand gripped the handle tightly.

Inside was exactly 5 million- cash.

How he had managed to pack all of that money in one case, no one knew. (Not even him.)

But now, as he approached the sight, he was nervous. Yes, _the Batman_, was nervous. Well, technically, he wasn't _the Batman _at the present time- he was _the Bruce Wayne_, so he had every right to be nervous.

Joker's voice blared over several speakers hooked all around the barbed-wire fence. _"That's far enough, Brucie Boy. Now... send in the cash."_

"Send out my son!" Bruce screamed back.

After a long moments' pause, Joker said, _"No can do, Brucie."_

Bruce shouted in response, "Then you can forget about your money!"

And he turned to leave-

The doors opened.

A fat, black man in all black came out, holding a dirty, bloody little boy in the crook of his left arm. In his right hand, he held a pistol, straight against the boy's head. Bruce's breath caught in his throat.

"_Now, give us the money."_

"Give me my son!"

Another pause.

"_All together now, then, Brucie Boy!"_

Slowly, Bruce and the mobster approached each other. Bruce held the case firmly at his side. The mobster had a tight hold on Dick. They reached the open gate, and the man actually _dropped _Dick on the ground. The boy let out a cry, and Bruce had him in his arms in an instant.

Then, the gun went off.

_BOOM!_

**FIVE MINUTES EARLIER**

Wraith leaped over the building tops, leaping gracefully, disappearing and reappearing into and out of the shadows. Batgirl swooped down below him, using her grappling hook to swing from building to building like Spiderman. BlackHawk was running in front of Wraith, at a slower pace, but the younger hero still had a hard time keeping up.

They got a call from Bruce about the hair, blood, photo, note- _everything_.

They had to get there before Bruce did.

Wraith was panting, now, tired and feeling weak. After all, it was- CRAP! 2:58.

"WE'VE GOT TWO MINUTES!" he screamed at BlackHawk, who imperceptibly nodded.

They kept going.

Finally, at _exactly _3AM, they reached the jail.

The mobster man was right in front of Bruce, holding Dick in his arm, with a pistol aimed at the boy's head. Bruce held the case.

Suddenly the man dropped Dick. Bruce dove down to try and catch him.

The man turned his pistol on Bruce.

"NO!" Batgirl screamed and launched a bat-a-rang.

At the last second, the gun was thrust into the air.

_BOOM!_

The mobster flew back as bat-a-rang hit his forehead.

Bruce, holding the case on his wrist, holding Dick in his arms, ran away from the building, while Joker screeched over the intercom, _"NO FAIR, NO FAIR, NO FAAAAAAIIIIIIIR!"_

Dick was safe. Bruce was safe.

Their job was done...

Finally...

Well, almost finally.

The police stormed the place, found Joker and Harley, and took them off to Arkham.

It was easy-

Too easy...

BlackHawk looked over the cars, trying to catch a glimpse of Dick and Bruce.

Sure enough, there they were, being tended to by an ambulance that had just arrived. Dick looked alright- from a distance. But he was talking and moving around, even sluggishly. Underneath the mask, Jason grinned.

Dick was okay. He would be _just fine_...

Then, something moved in the shadows.

Jason's mask caught a glimpse of it, and the boy turned to face it. But nothing was there.

Anymore...

"Being a Wayne _is _hard," Dick said with a small smile as Alfred re-wrapped his hand. After getting surgery on it, the doctor said it would heal up nicely. Now, three weeks after the kidnapping, everything was back to normal- well, as normal as being a Wayne _could _be.

Alfred smiled and patted his charge's cheek. "Yes, it is, Master Dick."

He helped the boy off the bar chair and sent him on his way. Bruce grinned as Dick shuffled around in his cast, trying to get the TV remote from Jason. The older boy distracted Dick as Terrence rushed up behind him, trapping him in a head-lock. Barbara began to tickle the black-haired boy mercilessly, and Dick's squeals could be heard all over the Manor. Then, Blaine jumped on Terrence's back and began to beat him over the head with a pillow.

Bruce stood back, watching his wards while Alfred fixed dinner.

The butler looked up and smiled at the man he considered to be a son. "Master Bruce," he said, "something is bothering you still."

Bruce sighed heavily, rubbing his temples as he rested his elbows on the bar. "Yeah, yeah Alfred, something _is _bugging me..."

"Well, sir, a penny for your thoughts?"

Bruce grinned. "Alfred, people pay _millions _for my thoughts."

"Yes, well, I can spank you, so tell me what is wrong, sir."

Chuckling, Bruce looked over to Dick. "It's Dick."

Alfred gave Bruce his signature eyebrow-cock. "What is wrong with Master Dick?"

Bruce shook his head. "No, no, no, nothing's wrong with _Dick_, but..." He lowered his voice. "I was _so sure _that it was _Zucco _that had him... Now, we're back to square one on catching that bast-"

"Eh hem."

Bruce smirked sheepishly. "C'mon, Alfred. You know what I mean."

Alfred shrugged as he drained the pasta. "Well, Master Bruce, all I can say is that you should enjoy the time you have with them. We will cross _that _bridge when we get to it, no?"

Bruce chewed on the words for a moment, then smiled and patted Alfred's shoulder. "Thanks, Alfred."

Alfred beamed in a way only an old man could. "Anytime, Master Bruce."

Bruce jumped into the fray his children had created, and Alfred rolled his eyes. "I wonder where I went wrong, sometimes..."

**YAAAAAAY! Dick's alive!**

**Okay, I know this Ch. isn't my best, so please, no flames...**

**READ::::::::::::::: I'm gonna start a new series! YAY! (So now I have MTF, SHOT, and NIGHTWING (a Young Justice fic that i'm staring tomorrow! READ IT!))**

**V**

**review**

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	11. Nicknames

**This might seem like a filler-chapter, but to ANYONE who read my one-shot 'Entreuentia', you will understand what 'Sparrow' and 'Robin' have to do with later chapterrs. :)**

**BTW! 'Entreuentia' is _not _a chapter or related to this- meaning, THINGS WILL NOT BE THE SAME (besides the names, hence the above comment.)**

**ANYWAYS**

**I own nothing. (besides Jason, BlackHawk, Terrence, Wraith, Blaine, and Sparrow. SO BACK OFF!)**

**WARNINGS: mention of rape (VERY NON-EXPLICIT) but if the thought bugs you, just skip the nightmare part. (VEEEEERRRRRYYYYY non-explicit, just her thoughts on it.)**

**SO... R&R, peoples!**

It was well past midnight. Blaine, her wet hair sticking to her neck, was in a warm pink nightgown. Now that it was almost October, the weather had been getting chillier, especially at night. Dick sat next to her, curled up against her pillows, wearing flannel pants and a flannel shirt, both engraved with the initials: R. J. G. in fancy cursive script. They both watched as the tiny TV in Dick's room sent lights all over their tired faces. They (Terrence, too) were off for the week, due to 'teacher appreciation', but the older kids were still in school. Now, as they watched Tom an Jerry, the two were whispering quietly, as to not wake up Alfred. Somehow, though, he _always _knew.

"...What's your favorite color?"

Blaine giggled. "Pink. Yours?"

"Red."

She grinned, mirroring Dick's expression. "Cool. Our colors are almost the same!"

Dick put a finger to her soft pink/orange lips. "Ssh! You'll wake Alfred!" he hissed.

Dick's room had, every wall, a different color- red, blue, yellow, and green. The door was orange, as were the closet doors. The window curtains were red, with little yellow trains, cars, and planes embedded in the thick fabric. His floor was half-wood (at the door) and half light red carpet (from China, remember?). Bruce and Jason had recently painted the room for him- bright colors, all of them. Bright and happy, though not quite at night.

Dick was still having the nightmares.

His parents, the circus, the 'Jr. Arkham's' and the cell in Juvie... The _Joker_.

But they weren't as often- maybe twice a week.

He shivered, and Blaine frowned. "You alright, Dickie?"

He nodded and snuggled closer to her. "Just cold."

She smiled as he pulled the comforter up over his shoulders. He made sure to tuck it in at his 'twin's' neck, too. She giggled, but cut it short as the two waited to hear Alfred's feet in the hallway.

After several moments, they eyed each other and shrugged.

Alfred was the only one home, besides them. Terrence, Barbara, Jason, and Bruce were all out on patrol. So, now, they had the whole mansion to themselves- _if _Alfred had let them stay up. ("But we don't have school!" "You need to stay on a schedule. It is good for childrens' health.") So, earlier, Dick had snuck into Blaine's room, dragged her back to his, and turned on the tiny box-TV that Bruce had gotten him for his room.

Tom and Jerry was Dick's favorite show, and it turned out to be Blaine's favorite, too. So, they decided to watch it. And, while they were at favorites, they decided to go on.

"Animal?"

Dick thought a moment. "Tiger. Like Rina! She was an Asian Tiger- from India! I helped train her."

Dick wasn't as sad about the circus as he had been- after all, it had been close to seven months since he had been living at the Manor. Now, he was more proud than anything about them, and shared stories of him and the animals and other workers- he _still _wasn't quite ready to talk about his parents, just yet, though.

But that was okay.

Blaine _still _wasn't ready to talk about _her _parents...

"_Blaaaaaaine_!" Dick's voice rang out in a whisper. "What's _your _favorite animal?"

She smiled. "Shark!"

He grinned. "Cool!"

After several more minutes, Blaine was asleep. Dick watched her, her rosy cheeks, small, yet full, lips open slightly as she snored silently. Soon enough, though, sleep took the small boy as well...

_She turned and saw him coming at her, the normal wild gaze in his eyes. She let him do it- she was only three. How did a three-year old know what he was doing?_

_She started getting scared at five, as he had started to beat her, too._

_At seven, she was fed up. She began to fight, kick, scream, bite, claw, punch, anything to get him off her._

_So, he hit her harder._

_Three times a week soon turned to twice a day._

_Once before school- in the alley._

_Once after school, after his girlfriend was asleep- in the alley._

_She had only one pair of jeans, now. All of the others had blood, dirt, and tears that would not go well over at her school._

_So, she bawled herself to sleep every night._

_He was coming at her now, that crazy gleam in his beetle eyes, a crowbar in hand. He didn't hit her with it, though. She was too fast. She ran, bolting down the street as he gave chase, screaming bloody murder the whole way._

_Finally, she reached an alley at the end of the two-way lane._

_Turning into it, she ran as fast as she could, arms pumping, hair flying back behind her, her little lungs and heart throbbing as she tried to get away._

_SMACK!_

_She ran right into a brick wall._

_Blood spurted from her nose and fell from a busted lip._

_But she was used to it._

_Standing, she saw that her hands were scraped, as were her knees. _Great_, she thought, _another pair of jeans down the- wait! _She wasn't wearing her jeans. She wore a little, fuzzy pink nightgown. On the chest was scrawled, _Barbara_._

_It was the nightgown that Barb had put her in when Batman saved her that night!_

_A husky voice came, and she shrieked, turning._

_WHACK!_

_The crowbar made contact with her chin._

_WHACK!_

_Her leg._

_BAM!_

_Her arm._

_CRACK!_

_Her arm._

_CRICK!_

_Her ribs._

_SMACK!_

_Her head._

_Everything went black..._

_When she woke up, she was chained to a wall. A brick wall, in the same alley. Shockingly, she wasn't wearing the nightgown, but a tight-skinned black outfit. _My training gear? _She looked up, and saw... _Them_..._

_She recognized them from Bruce's files._

_Joker, Scarecrow, Penguin, Mr. Freeze, Firefly, Clayface, and dozens of others. They began to beat her, smack her, kick her, knock her around until it felt as if her teeth were being knocked out of her head._

"_Stop!" she screamed, coughing up blood. "Please! Please, stop, stop, stop!"_

_Suddenly, they _did _stop._

_Then, she saw Dick and Terrence and Barbara and Jason- all of them- standing in front of her, pistols aimed straight at her head. "N-no..." she hissed. "P-please..."_

_BANG!_

"AUGH!"

Blaine sat up bolt-right, panting and sweaty.

Dick's eyes snapped open, and he saw Blaine, her own obsidian almonds open wide, jaw slack, as tears streamed down her face. He sat up quickly, pulling her into his arms. "Blaine... Blaine, Blaine what's wrong?"

She couldn't speak, though. She only cried, cried into Dick's shoulder until it felt like the world was over.

The whole time, he just sat there, ten years older than he really was. While he was sitting with her, Dick realized how tiny Blaine really was. Sure, he was small for his age, but she was only an inch or so taller than him, and just as skinny. She was almost a year and a half older than him, though!

She was more fragile than he had thought...

The door slammed open, and Alfred, looking worried, darted in, still in suit. "Oh, goodness, Master Dick and Miss Blaine! I heard a scream and I presumed that- oh."

He saw Blaine shaking as she sat in Dick's lap. He disappeared. Three minutes later, he was back with several thick, fuzzy blankets. Wrapping Blaine up in them, he carried her downstairs, Dick hot on the butler's heels.

Alfred set Blaine's tiny body down on a chair, and Dick snuggled into it with her as Alfred walked from the living room to the kitchen. There was only half a wall, the bar, so the area was twice as large as it should be, and Alfred had a good sight of his charges. Blaine had stopped crying, and was asleep, but Dick looked on the verge of tears as he looked at Alfred. "What- what happened to her?"

"A nightmare, Master Dick-"

"I know, Alfred, b-but what was her nightmare _about_?"

Alfred paused, the milk-filled kettle just above the flaming stove. "I believe that is a question for another time, Master Dick."

Dick sniffled and nodded. _C'mon, Grayson! Blaine needs you now..._

As if on cue, she awoke from her half-slumber. "Dickie?" She sat up, rubbing her eyes. "Wh-what happened?"

"You had a nightmare," Dick explained as he helped her pull the blankets off, "and Alfred brought you down here."

The scent of chocolate filled the living/kitchen area, and the two grinned and spoke in unison, "Hot chocolate!"

In five minutes, the hot chocolate was in mugs and in the childrens' hands as they sat next to each other at the bar, slurping it down and playing with the tiny, melting marshmallows.

Dick looked at Blaine, who seemed to be acting nonchalant. A quick peek at Alfred showed his laid-back attitude, as well.

"Is this kinda' thing normal here?" he asked, breaking the silence.

Alfred looked at Dick oddly, as did Blaine. After a quick eye-exchange, the two nodded.

"Yeah," the girl said. "We all have our own... pasts... So we all have nightmares. Normally, I'm down here three or four times a month."

Dick smiled. "Only a month?"

Blaine giggled at him. "Yeah. I've been here almost two years, now." Her face suddenly got serious. "The nightmares _do _stop eventually, Dickie... Maybe not forever, but for a while."

He looked at his hot chocolate, a tear dripping down his chin. "I- I just miss t-t-them s-so m-m-much..." he cried.

Blaine's eyebrows furrowed pitifully as she hugged Dick. They cried together as they sat on their bar stools, hunched over so that they could wrap their small arms around each other. Alfred knew there was nothing he could do at the moment, and the Masters and Mistress would be home soon, so, reluctantly, he left the two 'twins' alone.

It took a minute or two, but they eventually quieted. Blaine's eyes met Dick's, and she said, "My mom died from breast cancer when I was a baby. My daddy- he- he beat me and did... _other _things, too... But, Batman saved me and brought me here when I was eight. I have a lot of scars..." Her face was downcast.

Dick felt the silence grow awkward. "My parents were aerialist- trapeze artists- for Haley's Circus... When Pop Haley refused to pay a 'fee' to some mobster, he- he cut the ropes that my parents were using and, w-w-well..." he sniffled. "They fell."

Blaine gave Dick another hug, which he returned fiercely. "I love you, Dicky," she said softly.

"I love you, too, Sparrow."

She drew back, smiling. "S-Sparrow?"

He shrugged, blushing. "You remind me of a sparrow. Sparrows are always so light and happy and pretty- like you..."

She grinned. "Thanks, Boy Wonder."

He blushed harder. "Whatever."

They both laughed.

Bruce, Jason, Terrence, Barbara, and Alfred all walked into the room to see two red-faced, giggling adolescents who were practically falling off their chairs.

Jason cocked an eyebrow in a very Alfred-like way, and the old man did his own signature 'cock. Bruce looked curiously at Alfred, who shrugged. Barbara giggled at their antics, and Terrence cracked up.

The two jumped when they heard everyone. Then, Blaine fell from her chair, head-first towards the tile-

In that 1.5 moments, five things happened:

1. Bruce gasped.

2. Alfred almost had a heart-attack.

3. Jason leaped forward, but too late.

4. Terrence froze.

5. Barbara squealed.

But the final thing was the most important.

Dick grabbed Blaine by her nightgown's collar and dragged her, flailing, back up onto the bar stool. Face pale, eyes wide, she half-smiled at him. "T-thanks..."

He grinned cheekily. "It's nothing- I'll always protect you, Sparrow."

Everyone else went Alfred-brow-cock at the nickname.

The two only giggled again.

After they caught their breath, 'Sparrow' wiped happy-tears from her eyes. "Okay... So, Jason's Black_Hawk_, Bruce's _Bat_man, Barbara's _Bat_girl, Terrence is _Wraith_, and I'm _Sparrow_!"

The two giggled furiously again, to everyone's annoyance.

"So...?" Jason began.

"Soooooo," the two said in unison before Dick took over, "you all are things that can _fly_!"

Barbara chuckled, and Terrence glared at her. "Really?"

"Wh_aaaa_t?"

Blaine turned to Dick. "But, you're Boy Wonder... you can't fly!" she whined. "You need to be able to _fly_!"

Dick's thoughts wandered over to his mom and dad. "My- my mom called me Robin sometimes..."

Jason grinned at this, picking the two up into his arms, one under each pit. He ignored their choruses of 'Hey!' and 'Watch it!'. "Soooo... Sparrow and Robin, that's _great_! Wadda ya think, Bruce?" He turned to his father-figure. "Those good hero names...?"

Bruce scowled firmly. "Someday."

Dick and Blaine sighed and went slack in Jason's arms. "Someday..." Dick muttered as Jason carried him upstairs to bed. "Someday..."

**YAAAAAAAAY!**

**I'm gonna have 1 or two more one-shot chapters before I go into another series, called 'Becoming Robin'. Oooooooh... EXCITING!  
>BTW- Will update NIGHTWING tomorrow or tonight, but don't wait up for me. :)<strong>


	12. Clark Babysits

**I OWN NOTHING (except for Sparrow, Blaine, Terrence, Wraith, Jason, and BlackHawk.)**

**WARNINGS: none.**

**Summary: Superman babysits**

Dick yawned and stretched his tiny arms into the air, his tongue lolling around as he smacked his jaws like a dog. He cracked his neck and looked out the window, seeing the grounds stretching all over across Wayne Manor's property- all 250 acres of it. Expanses of forests led out in a wide half-circle, almost 50 acres thick in the back. Jason and Terrence had promised to take him 'hiking' through the forest sometime soon. Bruce might even come.

But now, today, they (Terrence, Blaine, and himself) were going to a friend's house while Bruce, Jason, and Barbara went 'out' for 'business'. Alfred was on an 'outing' with the doctor, Leslie Tompkins, and Bruce refused to leave the kids alone at home until midnight, when Alfred would return from his date. ("It is _not _a date, young masters and misses!")**(1) **Sooo... Bruce decided to let the younger kids stay the night at a friend's house.

"DICK!" called Jason as he came down the hall. "ARE YOU READY?"

Dick looked at his clock and frowned. "Dang it!" The clock read: 8:30AM. He was supposed to be at this certain 'friend's' house at 9AM.

"ALMOST!" he lied as he rushed around the room, grabbing up his favorite shirt- a collage of different hero symbols (Flash, Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, ext. ext...). He pulled it on, trying to straighten out the wrinkles and pull on his khaki pants and Velcro tennis-shoes at the same time. He mussed up his hair, making the bedhead look intentional, then grabbed his tiny drawstring pack and shoved inside his PJ's, his socks, his favorite book (The Three Little Pigs), toiletries, and his little, stuffed bear.

At exactly 8:55AM, Dick ran downstairs to find Blaine in her pink skirt, purple polo shirt, and her hot pink Crocs with knee-high white socks, butterflies on the outside edges. She smiled at him, holding up her Sleeping Beauty backpack, and said, "Ready?"

He nodded and followed her out to the Bentley. Terrence, clad in a white tee-shirt and black jeans with Converse, sat in the front seat next to Alfred as the two argued about whether or not Terrence could get an earring.

"Why _noooot_, Alfie?"

"Because, young Master, you are a _male _of the species."

That ended the conversation.

The drive was about fifteen minutes, putting them at ten late. They reached Metropolis easily, sliding out of the car, nap sacks in hand. It was an apartment complex, tall, white-washed with burgundy roof tiling, and had a fountain in the front with a black-rod gate and a phone box. Alfred had parked the Bentley under an oak tree outside the gate in the shade from the warm sun. Even though it was almost October, the sun was still warming the back of Dick's neck, and it would easily heat up the black leather seats.

Alfred pushed the intercom button, and a cheesy voice rang out in a soprano about five octaves too high, _"This is Jennie! How may I assist you?"_

"I am here for a visit with Clark Kent."

"_One moment please."_

After a pause, the gates clicked. _"He's expecting you."_

Alfred pushed the doors open, and the four walked in. After a short journey up the outside stairs, they reached a large apartment with a soft green door. Alfred knocked, and the door opened almost on contact.

The three children gazed up at Mr. Kent, wide-eyed. He was a good four inches taller than Alfred, and his shoulders were twice as wide. His dark brown hair had a cowlick in the front, and his eyes sparkled blue behind those wide-rimmed glasses. He wore a simple white polo and jeans. "C'mon in," his voice boomed as he swept out an arm.

Alfred entered with ease, and Terrence, a bit intimidated, walked in after. Blaine and Dick huddled together as they scampered after their older 'sibling'. Mr. Kent grinned at them as he trailed behind.

"You can put your backpacks down anywhere," he said, "and please, take your shoes off. Relax, and make yourselves at home."

The apartment was very large, with pale, almost white carpeting. The kitchen's wall was cut in half, much like that at the Manor, and the tile was dark, speckled black. The living room's west wall was a full window, with an excellent view of the city, especially the Daily Planet. There was an 'L'-shaped red sofa, and a green and gray recliner with a wide flat-screen mounted on the wall. A clear-glass coffee table was in the middle of the room.

Blaine set her bag down on it, and Terrence put his next to it. After a moment's hesitation, Dick dropped his on the floor next to the sofa.

Mr. Kent turned to Alfred, clamping the old butler on the back. "They'll be fine, Alfred. We'll have fun."

Alfred smiled politely. "I am sure of it, Mister Kent." He gave a nod to the children, saying, "You have everything you need, yes?"

They all nodded with choruses of, "Yes, Alfred."

He nodded again and took his leave.

Mr. Kent rubbed his hands together. "Alright. My name is Clark Kent, but you can just call me Clark. And your names are..." He scrunched his eyes as he gazed at the kids, pointing to Terrence. "Richard?"

Terrence giggled. "Naw, _that's _Dick."

Dick blushed, and Clark laughed. "Oh, right, sorry. So, Terrence... Blaine... and- you go by Dick?"

The boy nodded, and Clark grinned. "Alright. I only have one extra room, so I guess two of you can share that bed, and the sofa is free."

"I'll take the sofa," Terrence said.

Clark nodded. "Right. And Blaine, Dick, you guys okay with sharing a bed?"

The two nodded, and Clark clapped his hands. "Alright, then! Anyone hungry?"

All three nodded, and Clark smiled. "Well, sorry, but I'm not the best cook. But I know a great diner- you all good with pancakes?"

….

….

After stuffing themselves full of sugar and carbohydrates, all three children were extremely bouncy, so, Clark took them to the park to burn off that extra energy. Dick and Blaine played tag together, weaving in and out of the swing sets, while Terrence did... push-ups and crunches? Clark shook his head. _A true Bat..._

Suddenly, Blaine tripped and cried out as her knee scraped against the sidewalk. Clark was over in an instant, helping the crying girl up. Her knee was chalky, but didn't bleed. "I-I'm okay..." she muttered as Dick gave her a big hug.

"You sure?" Clark asked. _Oh, God, Bruce's gonna kill me if they get hurt any more..._

She nodded. "Yeah. It just stung a bit."

Standing, Blaine and Dick continued their game.

At around noon, the four left the park to go back to the apartments, but, on the way, there came a loud shriek.

"AUGH! FIRE! FIRE!"

Clark's eyes widened, and he turned to the kids, lowering his body to be eye-to-eye with them. "Stay here," his voice spoke firmly as he pushed them gently behind a mailbox. He disappeared into an alleyway. Several moments later, Superman was flying in the sky.

The kids' eyes widened. Bruce hadn't told them that _Clark _was _Superman_!

They watched as Superman flew towards the smoking building. As soon as he flew in, flames leaped up into the air, licking away the bakery's roof. Blaine gasped, drawing her fingers to her mouth as the building collapsed.

The fire trucks pulled in just then. As they pulled the people away from the scraps, they heard someone scream, "MY DAUGHTER WAS IN THERE!"

There was a loud silence, then tears and cries of anguish were exchanged.

Dick shed a few tears, his face turning pale as he thought, _Superman?_ But, odd enough, Terrence didn't seem worried. Blaine was staring, utterly shocked, at the building.

Then, a figure appeared in the smoke. It was Superman, his costume in pristine conditions, holding a little blonde girl in his arms tightly. He handed her to her mother, and the crowd applauded. He nodded, exchanged a few words, shook hands, posed for pictures with the little girl, then flew away. Everyone waved, watching as he disappeared.

Dick turned to Terrence. "How- how did you-"

"-Know I was okay?" Clark's voice came. He stepped out of the alleyway, smiling and straightening his shirt. "I'm invincible. I'm sure that Batman told you," he spoke this to Terrence, who shook his head.

"Naw. Barb, Jay, and I just hacked into the Bat-computer and looked up your files."

After giving Terrence a confused face, Clark just shook his head. "Bats..."

….

….

At around five, Clark and the kids went to get McDonald's ("Bruce _never _lets us eat fast-food!" Clark turns green. "Crap..."). Then, they got home at around six. Clark eyed the clock and turned to the kids, putting his hands on his hips. "Sooo... What do you all want to do?"

After spending the day at the park, watching movies, listening to Clark's stories about Batman and Flash (and the fights they got into), and eating tubs of high-fat, sugary foods, the kids were bored.

Dick shrugged. Blaine followed his motions. But Terrence's eyes glittered. "Can you take us to the Watchtower?"

The reporter frowned. "I _don't _think that would be a good idea..."

"Why not?"

Clark shifted from one foot to the other. _Cause Bats would hang me by my toes on Kryptonite chains from stalactites in the Batcave. _"Because you aren't official members," he said. "Plus, Dick and Blaine don't even have alter-egos."

No one could argue with this, so Clark ended up pulling out a few board-games. But, soon enough, the kids got bored with Monopoly and Trivial Pursuit, and began to annoy Clark for fun.

"So, why do you wear your underwear on the outside?" This question was Terrence's.

"I- I don't know..." There was a tinge of realization in Clark's voice.

Blaine: "When did you become a hero?"

"Well, I started to do 'good deeds', I guess you could call it, in costume when I was... Oh... maybe twenty or so? Yeah, twenty-one."

Dick: "Are you Batman's best friend?"

"Um... He's _my _best friend, I guess."

Terrence: "Why does Kryptonite effect you if you are _Kryptonian_? I mean, they're almost the same words!"

"What does them being almost the same words have to do with anything?"

"I dunno..."

Dick: "Why are your boobies so big?"

"..."

Blaine: "Do you wear a built-in bra?"

"..."

Terrence: "Are you a girl?"

"SHUT UP! THEY'RE MUSCLES!"

After pulling a crying Blaine and a terrified Dick from the corner, Clark brought them into his bedroom, setting them down on the bed next to Terrence. "Here!" He handed an X-Box gaming-handle to Terrence. "Barry let me borrow his X-box. You guys can play it for a while."

After they succeeded in setting the X-box on fire, Blaine asked if they could make cookies.

Then, they tried to make popcorn.

Then, they tried to fix the X-box.

Then, they tried to de-toxify the oven. ("Who knew you couldn't put plastic in the oven?")

Needless to say, the fire-extinguisher was their best friend that night.

At almost 10PM, Clark decided it was time to put the kids to bed.

Terrence went to sleep, no questions asked, but Blaine and Dick stayed up. "Read us a story?" Dick begged.

"Please?" Blaine added.

They both put on their best puppy-eyes. Not even Batman could have said no.

Clark: "There once were three little pigs. The first was named Curly, the second, Porkers, and the third, Beefy-"

Blaine: "Hey! Pigs don't make beef."

Clark: "Well, I didn't write the book."

Dick: "Yeah, but you should write a letter to whoever did."

Clark: "Tell you what, tomorrow, after you leave, I'll write a firm editor's letter to the author, and see if he'll fix it for us."

Blaine: "The author's a girl."

Clark: "Oh... Then, _her_."

After the story was done, at almost 11PM (Dick and Blaine had several things to say.), Dick had to go potty. So, Clark waited up to tuck him back in. Then, Blaine was thirty. Then, Dick was thirsty. Then, they both had to go potty again. Then, they woke up Terrence, who wanted a midnight snack. So, naturally, Blaine and Dick wanted a midnight snack. Then, Dick spilled his orange juice all down his front. After getting him to a bath, Terrence and Blaine were wide awake. So, Clark popped in a movie for them while he helped Dick was his unruly mane. After the movie, Terrence fell asleep on the couch, and Blaine fell asleep next to him. Dick objected that he didn't want to sleep alone, but there was no room on the couch, so he opted to sleep with Clark. The boy said that Clark's boobies were too hard to sleep on, though, and went back to his room to snuggled with his teddy bear. But, after about an hour of not being able to sleep, he went and woke up Blaine, who followed him back to bed. This, of course, woke up Clark, who, in turn, woke up Terrence. When they all got to sleep, it was almost 5AM. Alfred was coming to get the kids at 7AM.

So, after a short hour and a half of sleep, the kids filed out into the living room, teeth brushed, hair combed, dressed still in their PJ's, though. (Dick didn't have a shirt, as it was covered in smelly orange juice.)

Alfred simply cocked an eyebrow at Clark, who blushed and stammered until the butler held up a hand. "Thanks you, Mister Kent, for watching the children."

Needless to say, Clark would not be babysitting again.

**HA HA HA**

**okay, just a cute little one-shot so that I can gather my thoughts on 'Becoming Robin'. TWO MORE ONE-SHOTS UNTIL THE NEXT SERIES!**

**until then...**

**V**

**obviously, I am either asking you to hit the REVIEW button or the ADD below.**

**And, since I do NOT want a fake robin costume, i only ask that you review. :)**

**W**

**V**

**v**


	13. Philosophy

**im back. :)**

**WARNINGS: mentions of rape and murder- nothing bad. REALLY- this is ME! do I really have naughty details?... DONT ANSWER THAT!**

**but, seriously, mentions of rape, ja, but, really, its nothing, especially if uve already read CH 3.**

**SUMMARY: Jason chats with Alfred and Bruce**

**CHARACTERS: Jason/Alfred (son/grandfather, u pervs) Jason/Bruce (son/father, u pervs)**

**I OWN NOTHING (besides the usual stuffs, so, ja.)**

The blizzard roared outside, white specks landing all around Wayne Manor and sweeping into the forested area surrounding the place that five children called 'home'. The sky was black, but, somehow, the white managed to zoom down and POP right in front of your face- like Alfred.

Alfred, who was making hot chocolate for Blaine, Barbara, Terrence, and Jason, and hot chicken noodle soup for Dick.

"ATCHOO!"

Jason sighed heavily as he fished out some marshmallows from the thick, brown liquid. He watched as Barbara laid another heavy quilt on Dick's tiny, pale, shivering body. His eyes were closed, but his eyelids and nose were red. Barbara frowned, eyebrows making a worried line, as she tucked Dick into the couch further. He looked like a tiny, porcelain doll in those blankets.

Terrence was slurping up his cocoa so fast that he burnt his tongue. "OUCH, OUCH, OUCH!"

Blaine giggled at her 'brother's' pain. Alfred smiled gently as Terrence scowled. "Miss Blaine, could you give this to Master Dick?" He handed her a large, fancy Chinese porcelain bowl, filled to the brim with a clearish-yellowish liquid and noodles. Little chunks of potatoes, carrots, and green chives littered around in the broth.

Sitting down next to the shivering little boy, Blaine ordered, "Open up, Robin."

He shivered and looked up at his 'twin', opening his mouth a tiny bit.

Blaine 'drove' the spoon into his mouth, depositing the contents into his stomach.

Sadly, the little boy's sick stomach couldn't take it.

With a sickening, squirting sound, Dick's whole dinner, lunch, and breakfast fell out of his frail body and onto the quilts. Blaine made a face as Barbara pulled the blankets off. Alfred carried them upstairs swiftly.

Dick shivered, his whole body feeling like it was filled with dry ice, but also burning from the heat of the blazing fire-place before him.

Blaine hugged Dick tightly, and he sunk into her embrace. She stroked his hair, and he sighed heavily as Terrence put another quilt over his body.

"How long's he gonna be sick, Alf?" Jason asked, eyes worried, as the old butler came back down the stairs.

Alfred took a look at Dick, then said, "Dr. Leslie said that he had a normal flu- it should be gone in three days, at the greatest. Then, another two days of recovery."

Jason nodded, smiling as Blaine and Dick snuggled together. He leaned back against the bar, elbows on the counter, sipping his hot chocolate. Alfred mentally grinned at how much Jason looked like Bruce in that moment.

"Have you noticed, Alfred?"

Jason's words shook the butler gently from his trance. "Pardon, Master Jason?"

Jason nodded towards Blaine, who was helping Dick sit up to take some medicine. "Dick and Blaine. They're... close."

Alfred looked at his two youngest wards. "How would you say, Master Jason?"

Jason snorted. "I mean, I hear them up every night when we get home from patrol. Honestly, Alfred, I've sat down outside Dick's door and Blaine's door and just... listened to them." He ignored Alfred's disapproving glare. "Did you know that..." He licked his lips and took a deep breath, eyes flitting over to Blaine. "Did you know that... God, Alfred, she's ten... Her father... raped her?"

Alfred nodded solemnly. "I did."

Jason looked over to Dick. "And he... he watched his parents die..."

"I know, Master Jason."

Jason turned to Alfred, his eyes holding severe confusion. "Alfred... how can an eight-year-old and a ten-year-old talk about... rape and murder?" He turned and watched Alfred clean the pot he used to boil milk. "How can they just come clean like that? Talk to each other about such... dark things..." He shook his head. "I don't think I'll _ever _understand."

Alfred sighed as he scrubbed the pot. "Master Jason, I doubt I will _ever _understand _anyone _in this household- even myself."

Jason cocked an eyebrow. "Why wouldn't you understand _you_?"

Alfred sighed as he set the pot on the counter. The old man's usual strong stance was replaced by a defeated one. His shoulders slumped slightly, and his white mustache was bending downwards with his frown. "Master Jason, I hardly understand how I have lived this long with the worry I put myself through with this family." He shook his head, a small smile on his face. "Sometimes, young Master, I hardly understand why I stay."

Jason blanched, his lips parting as he rasped, "What- what do you m-m-mean?"

Alfred smiled sadly at Jason. "Please, Master Jason, do not take what I say wrongly." He crossed from the kitchen into the dining room, where Dick had fallen asleep, Blaine cuddled up next to him. He set to work, tucking the two in, as Barbara and Terrence began a fierce game of Mario Kart. "You see, I am simply inquiring of myself why I do what I do. We all end up questioning our motives in life, Master Jason. I have, Master Bruce has, my parents did, his parents did. _Your _parents did, too."

Jason stammered. "What- what doubts have you had?"

Alfred shrugged slightly. "Why do I go on with all of what I do, only to worry about everything? Why do I try? Why do I add in what I believe, if I know I will not be of influence to the Master's decision?" He began to go upstairs, to dust, most likely. Jason followed.

"Alfred!" Jason snapped as he stumbled up the stairs. "Why- why do you- I mean- you don't- huh?"

Alfred chuckled slightly as he pulled a feather-duster out of mid-air. "You are a child, Master Jason- yes, mature, strong, smart, albeit young. I speak of things that you do not yet understand."

The teen rolled his eyes, snorting, "Yeah. I _don't _understand."

Alfred continued as he dusted the portrait of Mr. and Mrs. Wayne. "Philosophy, young Master. Wisdom and Smarts are two different things. I believe I can find an example..." He crossed to the large grandfather clock in the room (no, not _that _clock) and breathed on its glass before polishing it off with a rag. "Master Bruce is smart- he knows things, he can discover things, he can _tell _things. I, rather, am the other end of that. I am _wise_. Not to say that the Master _isn't _wise, but rather, I tend to level out his thoughts. I speak from experience, he speaks from theory."

Jason's mouthed made an 'o'. "Oooooh... Why didn't you just say that in the first place?"

Alfred smiled and turned from the room. "Wisdom versus Smarts, young Master."

The two trailed from room to room, talking deeply and thoroughly about all sorts of things- Jason's past, Bruce's past, Alfred's past- basically, _the _past, and how it influenced the future. Philosophy, basically. "But," Jason began as they _finally _sat back down in the kitchen, "what does any of this have to do with doubts?"

Alfred smiled, blue eyes twinkling as his mustache twitched with his grin. "Our past influences our future a great deal, young Master. Have you not been listening for the past several hours?"

At Jason's thoroughly confused expression, Alfred chuckled. "My parents were lower-classed citizens. My father had no job, nor did my mother. But, one thing they _did _have, was family. And, with family, came respect, and with _respect _came mannerism. I have my set if manners and my set of morals because of my past. I have my doubts, though, too, because of my past." His face grew pained. "My mother and I worried _constantly _over whether or not my father would come home- especially during the War. He went out, in the heat of battle, and I never knew whether or not he would return..."

Jason just sat there on the bar and stared at Alfred. "And that's why you have doubts about Bruce. They're not doubts on _you_- you're just worried about Bruce... Worried about being hurt..."

"...Again," the old man finished. Jason saw a tiny tear form in Alfred's eye. "My father died in the line of duty, Master Jason. If that were to happen to any of you-" His voice broke, and Jason jumped. Nothing, _no-th-ing_, ever shook Alfred.

Jason didn't know how it happened, but he found himself hugging Alfred in a death grip. "Alfred," he croaked, "You- you're _not _going to lose us... I promise."

Alfred pulled away gently. "Forgive me, Master Jason, but I would appreciate it if you did not make promises you could not keep."

And it was all over- just like that.

Alfred left the room, blinking back tears, while Jason sat there, frozen in place, shivering as the night flew by.

When he looked up, the kitchen clock read: **11:42**.

_Bruce'll wanna be going, soon._

He turned and saw Blaine and Dick, still sitting there alone on the couch. Jason frowned as Blaine shivered and sub-consciously sneezed. _Greaaaaaat..._

Going over, the young man shifted the tiny girl into his left arm, and the small boy into his right. "Ugh..." he grunted. "You two're heavy."

The trip up the stairs was an hour long. Jason's mind jumped from thought to thought, from worry to worry, from _doubt _to _doubt_. He tried to shrug it away, but it kept jumping back to bite him. His feet were heavy stones, dragging along the ancient red carpet that bled beneath his feet.

_Alfred... Scared? Worried? Fearful?... What about Bruce? He's not scared of _anything_... Is he?... Am I?_

Jason actually passed by Blaine's room. He stopped himself short, though, back-tracking and kicking it open silently. The shadowed pinks and purples greeted his eyes as he stepped inside. A tiny Sleeping Beauty nightlight blared bright colors that just barely illuminated the floor enough so that Jason didn't trip over stuffed animals on his way to the bed. Placing Blaine down, he used his free arm to pull the comforter over her tiny chest. She yawned, smacking her jaws like a cat, then rolled over, hugging her stuffed puppy to her chest.

Jason smiled at the innocent face. Then, his heart hardened and fury blared behind his blue eyes. _How could that... that... _monster _even think about hurting her like that? She's a little girl... She- she's a _baby_... And he- he scarred her for life... But- how is she so happy all the time, now, then? She and Dick, too!_

He looked down at the black-haired angel in his arms. The color was already returning to Dick's cheeks, and his eyelids weren't as puffy anymore. The medicine was working. _They've both gone through more hurt than _any _of us... Blaine, raped and tortured mentally _and _physically by her father... Dick, watching his parents fall to their deaths, running away from the man who killed them, being shoved into _Juvie_, for God's sake, just to keep safe!_

He shook his head in disbelief, backing out of the room silently. With a small _click_, it shut.

Jason traveled across the hall into the room marked, _Richard_, in fancy cursive scrawl. The door opened silently, just like Blaine's, and Jason deposited the boy into the train-set bed, pulling the sheets up under his chin. "How do you do it, Dickie?" he whispered, more to himself than to the boy. "How? You watched it all... Yeah, I was there when it happened to _me_, but I was five! You... you understood it all- yet, you don't understand anything..."

As he moped down the maze of hallways, tromped through the grandfather clock's secret passageway, and made his way down the stairs, Jason's head began to throb. "God," he swore, massaging his temples and plopping down in Bruce's chair.

"Are you alright?"

The young vigilante jumped ten feet at the deep, gravely voice. A black, Kevlar-covered hand touched his shoulder, sending a familiar calm over the boy's tense body. He settled down as Batman crouched next to him, trying to get a view into his eyes.

"Jason? Jason, look at me."

Jason cast weary eyes over his foster-father. "What?"

It came out much snappier than he had wanted, and the young hero visibly flinched. "I'm sorry, Bruce, I-"

The Dark Knight held up a hand. "I spoke with Alfred."

Sighing heavily, somewhat growling, Jason slumped further.

There was an awkward silence throughout the Cave, except for the bats in the air, flying and chattering with one another. In that time, Bruce did something that took Jason by surprise.

He pulled Jason into a standing position and pulled him into a fierce hug. After coming over his shock, Jason hugged the billionaire right back.

And they just stood there, frozen in that hug.

Finally, Jason pulled away, confused about the tears in his eyes. Bruce smiled softly and put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Jason, we all have our doubts, our fears, our own demons we need to face... We all come over them in our own time, too. Sometimes, like in Blaine's and Dick's cases, our body can't control the grief, so it's being stored away for a different time."

Jason cocked an eyebrow, and Bruce gave him that look that said 'I'd-chuckle-if-I-weren't-trying-to-be-serious'. "BlackHawk. Why'd you choose that name?"

Jason shrugged. "It's a cool name."

Bruce eyed him, and Jason bit his lip. _No one understands..._

"I won't understand unless you give me a chance to."

Jason swore. "Are you _sure _you can't read minds?"

After the Bat-glare made its day-beau, Bruce said, "Tell me _why _you chose it."

"Why did you choose Batman?"

Bruce sighed heavily. "Are we going to play this game?"

Silence.

"I was scared of bats as a child, and I wanted my enemies to share my fear, hence the name, _Bat-man_."

Jason shrugged as he crossed over to the Costume Case, trying to relieve the tension. "When I was three, I was attacked by a hawk in my backyard- we lived in Nevada, hawks were a common thing." He shrugged. "It just... kinda stuck. I was blinded for almost three months, ironic, right?" He shook a bit as he pulled off his shirt, replacing it with his silvery tunic. He felt Bruce's eyes boring into the back of his head. "Hence the name _Black-Hawk_."

"But why add the blindness?"

"What?"

"Why not just be HawkMan?"

Jason grinned. "That's taken."

Bruce would have rolled his eyes, _if _he wasn't Batman. "Why?"

Jason shrugged. "I felt vulnerable in those three months... I can still remember how it felt, even being just three... Everything was black, everything was cold, everything was..." He gasped for air as his chest grew tight. "Terrifying..."

The next four minutes that it took for BlackHawk to ready himself for the night were absolutely silent.

Finally, Jason spoke up. "Where're the other Bat-kids?"

"Barbara and Terrence both have the night off. Barbara wanted to stay with Dick and Blaine, who seems to be coming down with the flu, as well, and Terrence got the bug also."

"Great..." Jason moaned. "Now we have _three _sick kids on our hands!"

The two got into the Batmobile- Batman simply opening the door and getting in- while Jason, instead, launched himself in through the window. Batman started up the car, but didn't leave the Cave.

"Are we going or not?" Jason asked.

"Are we going?"

BlackHawk eyed his mentor. "Please, Bruce, I've had enough mind-numbing philosophy crap for the rest of my life."

Gripping the wheel tightly, Batman answered, "Jason, I have my worries and fears, too."

Jason's eyes grew wide. He stammered, trying to find the right words to say. He settled for: "W-Wh-Wha-What?"

Batman nodded, biting the inside of his cheek. "I am scared out of my mind when I take you three out on patrol. Every time you all get a single freakin' scrape, I berate myself, I go over every single detail on what I could have done better, what I did wrong, how I left you all unprotected. How, on _Earth_, I could have let _ANY _of it _HAPPEN_!" He slammed his palm on the driving wheel, and BlackHawk's whole body tensed.

"Bruce..." he hissed. "Bruce, none of our injuries are your- how could you even- Bruce..." He took in a deep breath. "I chose this, Barbara chose this, Terry- he chose this, too! Alfred, even- God, Bruce... We all know what to expect. The job is just that- _the _job. _Our _job. The job we share with you! We know the prices... You have nothing to worry about-"

"-I have _you _and _Barbara _and _Terrence _and _Blaine_ and _Dick _and-" he stopped sharply before hissing a swear word. Batman licked his lips and said, "Jason... To Hell with it- with this. Why do you think I won't let Blaine and Dick join? Why do you think I kept our second life away from Terrence for so long? From Barbara? From _you_? I'm _scared_, Jason!"

Again, the deafening silence resounded.

Jason suddenly spoke, "You? _You_? Scared?" He scoffed. "Yeah, right-"

"I'm scared to death that I'll have to watch you die."

Fear became a solid stone in BlackHawk's gut.

"I'm terrified out of my frickin' _wits _that I'll be there- right in front of you or Barbara or Terrence- and I'll see-" his voice cracked ever so slightly "-I'll see someone with a gun... And they'll fire..." Batman's eyes (beneath his mask) glazed over. "The blood... Her pearls... All for money... Just some dang green paper..."

BlackHawk did all he could- put a hand on his 'father's' forearm. Batman tensed under the unfamiliar gesture of warmth.

"I'm sorry, Bruce... I understand."

Bruce couldn't help but smirk. He pulled BlackHawk to lean into his strong chest and buried his face into the boy's light brown hair, leaving a gentle kiss on Jason's temple. "I know you do, kid... I know you do..."

Silence.

"So much for philosophy, eh?"

Bruce smiled gently as the Batmobile roared out of the Cave. "Yeah- Alfred studied it in England for almost three years."

BlackHawk cocked an eyebrow beneath his mask. "That explains _sooooo _much."

**Yeah, kindas a meaningless chapter...**

**THE NEXT CHAPTER IS: Dick's First Christmas At the Manor.**

**:)**

**'Becoming Robin' short CH series in MTF is coming in _3_ more chapters! :)**

**BUT UNTIL THEN...**

**REVIEW!**

**pwease?**


	14. Holly, Jolly, Superhero Christmas!

**Okay, reaaaaaaaaaaaally long, BUT GOOD!  
>I own nothing (besides the norm. I'm just tired of typing it all, but you know.)<strong>

**SUPERMAN, WONDER WOMAN, MARTIAN MANHUNTER, AND DAPHNE PENNYWORTH INSIDE!**

**So...**

**enjoy!**

**WARNINGS: nothing much, just a heated kiss. :0)**

_The night before Christmas,_

_And all through the house_

_Not a creature was stirring_

_Not even a mouse_

Dick stumbled over his long pajama pants, almost face-planting on the thickly carpeted floor, but, at the last moment, he did a small tuck-and-roll and landed, standing, on his feet, arms out like how his _Mamica _had taught him.

Tears suddenly sprang into Dick's eyes. This was his first Christmas Eve without his parents, and it had been striking hard for the past few weeks. The boy had thrown _several _temper-tantrums that always ended with him crying himself to sleep in his bed, Jason or Barbara next to him, there until he woke up the next morning.

Bruce didn't quite know- even with his 'experience'- how to deal with a tantrum. So, he just made Dick train harder to burn off his anger and energy. It worked- for the most part. After Dick got his energy back (which didn't take very long, him being an experienced acrobat and everything), he would go back to being a demon child.

But its not like he was _trying _to be a 'demon child'. He was just... sad. No one understood-

Okay, maybe Blaine understood a _bit_, but no one else even _tried _to talk to him about what happened! He wanted- no, he _needed _someone to talk to, but everyone was treating him like he was some kind of a china doll! They were scared if they tried to move him, he'd shatter into billions of pieces...

His tiny feet padded on the soft carpet of the stairs as he ran to the first landing. Gently, the boy opened the door to see Jason, his upper torso off of the bed while his mouth was open in a snore. Biting back a giggle, Dick motioned for the blonde-headed girl in a purple, fluffy nightgown to follow him.

Across from Jason's room was Barbara's. She, too, was fast asleep. Being that it was Christmas Eve, Bruce had given the 'kid's' the night off, much to Terrence's dismay. He _wanted _to go, but Bruce forced him to stay home.

Speaking of Terrence, the boy was in his bed, his pillow over his face and his blankets tucked in all around his feet, swirled around his ankles. Blaine turned to Dick, her onyx eyes bright and sparkling. As the boy shut the door, she whispered, "Bruce's still on patrol, so Alfred should still be up."

Dick shook his head. "Naw- Bruce gave Alfred the night off, too. Remember? And he's probably in bed asleep, 'cause he said he was gonna go get his niece, Daphne or something, early tomorrow morning- or, technically, this morning."

Blaine made an 'o' with her mouth in realization. "Okay. Let's check his door."

Dick nodded and led the way down the hall, shrugging off the scary eyes of the portraits all around him. It was Christmas Eve- not a time to be scared!

He bit back tears.

Every time he even _thought _the word 'Christmas', he thought of-

No. No, he wouldn't cry.

Not now.

Blaine opened the door a crack, revealing the old man in his bed, looking his normal frail, willowy form. But, anyone that knew the once-secret-agent would know that he could hold his own.

Gently, the girl pulled the door shut, not even making a tiny '_click_' of the lock as it did so.

Dick grabbed his foster-sister's hand, and the two made their way silently down the stairs to the Ballroom. In the north corner, right next to the stage and 'pulpit', was a large Fir tree. It stretched up almost eight feet tall, almost five feet wide. The needles were a dark green and smelt like cinnamon and mint. The bare branches loomed over several brightly-colored packages.

With one mischievous look to each other, the two bolted towards the presents-

And two strong hands grabbed the scruff of each of their PJ's.

Both children grunted as Bruce, back home early from patrol, pulled them up and under his arms. Giving both a stern, yet softened glare (for the holidays), he spoke in a hushed tone, "Santa doesn't appreciate it when little children try to root him out of his holiday."

Blaine stuck out her tongue as Bruce carried them up the stairs, and Dick said, "There's no such _thing _as Santa Clause!"

Bruce hushed him as they came to the top landing. "Well, you two may not think so, but I do," he lied.

Both kids' eyes grew wide, and they said in unison, "WHAT?"

"Ssh!" Bruce hissed, drawing them both into his own room, silently shutting the double doors behind him. Both kids scrambled from his arms and onto the bed, eyes wide still. Bruce smiled inwardly as he sat cross-legged in front of them. Even in his thick, black long-sleeved shirt and gray sweats, the man was chilly. He saw goosebumps rising on the two vigilante-in-trainings' arms, and he sighed, pulling them under the thick comforter. Blaine snuggled into his left, and Dick snuggled into his right. Bruce was surprised at how well the two tiny children fit into his sides.

"You _really _believe in Santa?" Blaine asked.

"Yes, of course," the billionaire bluffed.

"_Waaaaaaait_," Dick drawled, making a face. "Alfred said that baby Jesus was the _real _reason for Christmas!"

Bruce paled. "Um... Yes, Dick. Yes, Alfred was right."

Blaine smiled. "I _knew _it!"

Bruce would have grinned, if a sudden chill hadn't run through his body. He shivered, pulling the children closer as their little heartbeats echoed into his chest. "Yes, yes baby Jesus is the real reason for Christmas. We give God thanks that he delivered His only son to us, to end up dying on the cross for our sins." A small smile formed on the man's lips. "My parents were very strong Christians. We went to Service every Sunday, but we stayed home on Christmas to have our own little 'service'."

"Keep talking about baby Jesus!" Dick squeaked, pulling a pillow into his arms.

Bruce sighed. "Well, baby Jesus was born to a woman and a man named-"

"Mary and Joseph!" the two cried out.

Bruce glared. "Are you going to let me tell the story or not?"

"Sorry..."

"Well, Mary became pregnant through the Lord's blessing, and she and Joseph traveled to Bethany, a city, for a census-" At Dick's and Blaine's confused expressions, Bruce chuckled. "It's like... taking roll in class.

"Anyways, they went, and while they were there, Mary had baby Jesus. Shepherds and wise men all came to see him, and they gave gifts to him, very expensive and fancy gifts for back then, thousands and thousands of years ago. They gave him gold, frankincense, and a fancy kind of... eh, perfume, I guess you could say, called _myrrh_."

Blaine nodded. "So... Us getting presents is like- like..."

"A representation of the presents baby Jesus got!" Dick squealed.

Bruce chuckled. "Yes, I guess you could say that."

Blaine yawned loudly, followed by her 'twin's' own little intake of air. The billionaire sighed. "Alright. Time for bed-"

"Can we sleep with you?"

Bruce looked at Dick oddly. "Uh- no."

"Pwease?" Blaine begged, lip sticking out in a pout.

The man turned back to Dick, about to say 'no' again, but the boy had put on his own angel face. After a moment of being flabbergasted, Bruce growled, "Fine."

_All the little children_

_Were snug in their beds,_

_and visions of sugarplums_

_Danced in their heads_

Daphne was tall, had dirty blonde hair, blue eyes, and freckles. She looked to be about in her early twenties.

Alfred came in, smiling broadly as his niece followed. She grinned at the five foster-siblings, giving a small wave before she shed her large winter coat. "Hey, guys! My name's Daphne Pennyworth. Nice to meet 'ya!" She stuck out her hand, and Jason, blushing a furious red color, took it.

Daphne giggled, and Jason looked like he wanted to sink into the carpet.

Barbara and Daphne had met before, and the two dragged Blaine into Barbara's room for a 'make-over', leaving all of the guys alone for a while.

Dick and Terrence both were eying their presents as Alfred and Bruce made small-talk. Jason said nothing, but listened intently to the conversation.

"What do _you _hope you get?" Terrence asked.

Dick shrugged. All he really wanted was...

Terrence must have seen the look in Dick's eyes, because he put a hand on the younger boy's shoulder and said, "I know... I mean, actually, I never _knew _my parents, but it still hurts not to have them there with you- _especially _on Christmas..."

Dick, sniffling, wiped his eyes dry. "Y-y-yeah... It d-d-does..."

A frown met Terrence's chocolate-colored lips, reaching all the way up to his greenish eyes. He pulled Dick into an embrace as the boy began to cry. His tears melted into Terrence's plaid shirt, and the older boy pulled his little 'brother' tighter as he whimpered.

Bruce and Alfred must have heard, because Alfred immediately went to put on a pot of hot cocoa. Bruce walked over to Terrence and Dick, gently prying Terrence away. He pulled Dick into his arms, and the little boy gripped Bruce's neck tightly. Bruce ignored the snot and tears that dirtied his cashmere sweater.

Gently, he hushed Dick, one hand holding him to the man's broad chest, the other stroking his hair softly. "It's okay, Dick... It's okay..."

Jason stood off at a distance, looking unsure of what to do.

Then, the doorbell rang.

Dick's tears stopped, and Bruce set the boy in Jason's arms. The sixteen-year-old held onto his foster-sibling tightly, watching curiously as Bruce answered the door.

Jason couldn't see who it was, but, by the tone of Bruce's voice, he knew that the billionaire was annoyed at who had shown up.

"Hi, Bruce!"

"Kent," he grumbled.

"... Can I come in?"

Bruce muttered something, and, begrudgingly, stepped aside. In stepped a snow-covered Clark Kent, several brightly-colored packages in his arms. He grinned broadly at Dick, Terrence, and Jason from behind his wide-rimmed glasses. "Hello, boys! And Merry Christmas!"

Alfred came into the room at the loud voices. He smiled gently when he saw Clark. "Master Clark, what a surprise!"

Clark, grinning ever wider (if that was possible), set down the presents and hugged Alfred- gently, mind you. Man of Steel, remember?

The old butler was used to the Kryptonian's affection, but it didn't mean that he loved it. With a clearing of his throat, Alfred managed to pull Clark off of him. The reporter, looking bashful, turned to Jason, arms wide.

"Jason! It's been forever since I've seen you!"

"Two months," Jason replied with a false happiness. Sure, he loved Clark, but that didn't mean that he liked him.

Clark, oblivious to Dick's red-stained face, pulled the small boy into his arms. "Hello, Dick! It's nice to see you, again, too!"

Terrence piped up. "Wait! How do you know Jason?"

Clark turned, noticing Terrence for the first time. "Terrence!" After hugging the boy, he said, "Oh, I've know Jason and Barbara ever since they became heroes. I met them on a League priority case."

Terrence's eyes widened, and he glared at Jason with an obvious contempt and jealously. "_You've _worked _League _cases?"

Jason blushed. "Maybe..."

After prying Terrence off of Jason's supine form, Bruce turned to Clark. "Kent, it's nice to see you," he said with a hint of sarcasm, "but, really, what are you doing here?"

Clark shrugged. "Too snowy to go visit Ma and Pa, so I thought we'd come visit you!"

Bruce cocked an eyebrow. "_We_?"

The doorbell rang again, and, grumbling something about 'stupid Kryptonians', Bruce answered it.

His voice, this time, was a _bit _happier, and much more surprised. "Diana?"

In stepped a tall, black-haired, crystal-eyed woman. She kissed Bruce on the cheek, her ruby lips leaving a bit of residue on his cheek. She blushed, whispering, "Sorry," and wiped it away with her coat sleeve.

Bruce, like the gentleman that he was, took Diana's coat for her. Jason's eyes widened at the saucy dress the Amazonian wore. It hugged her figure perfectly, revealing just a _bit _of cleavage, but not as much as her super-suit.

Bruce turned to his 'sons', saying, "Terrence, Jason, Dick, this is Diana. (Wonder Woman)," he added in a playful whisper.

Diana sauntered over to Jason, kissing him on the cheek. "I know Jason!"

Terrence began to grumble again.

Diana turned to the boy and grinned, ear-to-ear, showing off pearly white teeth. "And you're Terrence! I heard about the new... partnership," she giggled. "Wraith is an _excellent _name, by the way."

Terrence's ear went bright red.

Diana then turned to Dick, who was currently latched onto Bruce's leg unsurely. "And you must me Dick," she said gently. She had read all of the tabloids about Bruce Wayne's new foster-son.

Lowering herself to his eye-level, she held out a hand. Tentatively, Dick shook it, then retreated back behind Bruce, ears turning a flamingo pink.

There came loud footfall, and the girls appeared. Daphne looked confused at the sighting of Clark and Diana, but she shook it off easily. "Hi!" she squeaked, shaking Clark's hand. "I'm Daphne, Alfred's niece."

Clark nodded, looking to Bruce for advice. The Dark Knight shook his head, and Clark gave a barely visible nod. "My name is Clark Kent," he said. "I work for-"

"-The Daily Planet!" Daphne cried out. "Oh, I'm in college to be a reporter!"

Clark beamed at this. "Really?"

"Yes!" Daphne squealed. "I _love _your article on the Justice League, where you try to squash all of those pathetic rumors... Everyone knows that Wonder Woman and Batman are _made _for each other, not Wonder Woman and the blundering Boyscout!"

Bruce suddenly remembered why he liked Alfred's niece so much.

Diana and Clark's eyes widened, then they both turned bright pink.

"Uh... Right," Clark grinned falsely.

Daphne turned to Diana. "And you are...?"

"Diana," the princess said, shaking the out-stretched hand.

A shy, black-eyed, blonde-haired girl approached from behind a red-headed girl with bright brown eyes. "Barbara!" Clark and Diana said in unison. (Terrence began to whine.) Barbara pulled Blaine in front of her. "This is Blaine," she said, mostly to Diana.

The princess smiled, pulling Blaine into a hug. After a shocked expression, Blaine hugged her back.

_This lady smells like Mommy used to..._

Diana pulled away, her nostrils flaring. She grinned smugly. "I smell-"

"Hot cocoa, anyone?" came the British voice everyone knew and loved so dearly. Diana grinned and kissed Alfred's cheek, and the old man blushed. (Diana seemed to have that effect on men, no matter the age...)

Dick jumped over to Blaine's side, and he noticed a bit of white sparkles on her face. He smiled. "You look pretty, Sparrow!"

She blushed. "Thanks, Robin."

Bruce cocked an eyebrow. "Sparrow? Robin?"

"Nicknames," they said in unison.

Barbara rolled her eyes, snorting. "_Truuuue_ twins."

Everyone lined up for their cocoa, and, ironically, Alfred had _just _enough mugs and cocoa.

Then, the doorbell rang.

Bruce bit back a growl. _Who _now_? _he thought.

Opening the door, he saw an almost seven-foot-tall, dark-skinned man. He wasn't quite Black, but not Caucasian, either.

"J'onn?"

The man walked inside. "Yes, Bruce. And, I apologize for the short notice-"

"No problem!" Barbara squeaked, running into J'onn's arms. To Dick's surprise, the Martian-in-disguise hugged her right back.

"Hello, Barbara. How are you?"

She beamed up. "Fine, Uncle J!"

He smiled back gently, turning to 'check-in' with Jason.

Suddenly, Diana snapped her fingers. "Oh! I almost forgot!" She turned to Bruce. "My gifts are out in the car-"

"I'll get them!" Terrence squeaked, running out the door without his coat. Jason rolled his eyes.

"I think I'll go help."

J'onn nodded, excusing the boy.

Dick gaped up at the... man?

The Martian, hearing Dick's thoughts of amazement and fear loud and clear, turned. He looked down almost five feet at Dick and smiled gently. "Hello..."

"H-hi..." Dick whimpered.

Blaine tried to hide behind Dick, and Dick tried to hide behind her. J'onn blushed (blue! How queer...) and turned to Bruce, who pulled the children away. "It's okay, guys," he assured them. "This is Martian Manhunter," he whispered, out of Daphne's rang of hearing. "He works with us in the League."

Blaine and Dick nodded slowly, still frightened slightly by the immense height of the man.

Daphne cleared her throat. "Hi, I'm Daphne," she said.

J'onn quickly read her thoughts and said, "I'm John Jones."

Daphne smiled back. "Nice to meet you, John!"

Terrence and Jason, red-faced, came back into the room with several large packages. Bruce and Clark walked over to help put them under the tree.

"You know," Bruce said, gesturing for Diana to sit (as she did, in a large, comfy-looking chair), "it's Christmas Eve, you know. Tradition says that you open presents on Christmas _morning_."

Diana rolled her eyes. "Oh, Bruce, don't be such a spoil-sport! I've got... businesswith a _meeting _tomorrow, and I decided to come over today." She batted her long eyelashes at Bruce, making red creep up his neck. "Do you mind?"

"N-no," the billionaire stammered, to his dismay.

"So does that mean we can open our presents _now_?" Terrence asked, bright-eyed.

Alfred frowned at him, but Clark simply laughed. "Why not?"

'John' seemed uncomfortable. "I- I did not bring gifts..."

Bruce put a hand on his shoulder. "It's alright," he said. "No need. I don't have any presents for you all," he admitted.

Diana shrugged. "We came unexpected. It's alright, Bruce."

Terrence was practically vibrating by now. "CAN WE OPEN OUR PRESENTS?"

Bruce, giving Terrence a glare, cocked his eyebrow.

Terrence blushed. Clark boomed, "Sure!"

This brightened the boy up a bit.

They all gathered around the room, the kids (and Daphne and Clark) all sitting on the floor in a half-circle around the Christmas tree. J'onn sat down next to Bruce at the bar, while Alfred stood behind Diana's seat.

Clark hefted all of his presents towards the kids. He blushed bright red when he got to Daphne. "I- I didn't really-"

She giggled merrily. "It's fine, Clark! I'm 24. I can handle it. Besides, I'll get a few gifts tomorrow!"

Clark brightened at her expression.

The kids opened their presents (Terrence more like attacked his, actually). Jason had gotten a very nicely crafted pocket-knife. Barbara got a small silver necklace with a- _wink, wink_- bat on it (thank _God _Daphne didn't understand! Bruce glared at Clark... ). Terrence received a new video game, _Monster Truck Mayhem_. Blaine, too, got a necklace, only this one had a flower on it. Dick got a remote-control truck.

In all, the kids loved Clark when it was over.

Much to Bruce's dismay, Clark had gotten _him _a present, too. He said he would much rather save it for Christmas (so he could incinerate it when Clark was gone), but Clark egged him to open it. Jason and Barbara mischievously teased Bruce to open the box, too.

To an even greater dismay on Bruce's part, it was a sweater, a _bright, neon green and red _sweater.

He smiled, more like grimaced, at Clark. "Thanks, Kent."

"No problem, Bruce!"

Clark had gotten Alfred a sweater, too. The old man had thanked him graciously, then thrown the thing into a waste-bin in the kitchen when he went to get more cocoa. (After all, when a sweater has three arms and no neck hole, it's kinda worthless...)

Diana's gifts were next.

She apologized, saying, "I'm not quite sure what men like... So, I got you all the same thing."

Turns out, she had gotten Bruce, Jason, Terrence, and Dick all silver watches, different sizes and makes, but still very nice watches. Bruce thanked her warmly, even giving her a peck on the cheek. The watch slipped off of Dick's wrist, and he flushed flamingo pink, again. Diana laughed, saying he'd grow into it.

For Barbara and Blaine, she got matching white dresses. They were long-sleeved and went to about the knee, both having green vines and flowers stitched into the hems of the bottom, wrist, and neck. Both also had soft green belts. The girls squealed with delight, thanking Diana with massive hugs.

Then, Diana gave Alfred _his _gift- a titanium spatula. Alfred's face glowed. "I needed a new one! Oh, thank you Miss Diana." (Bruce was thankful that the old man remembered to not say, _Princess _Diana.)

Clark got Diana a bracelet, and Diana got Clark and J'onn watches, too. Clark gave J'onn a new fedora. (He's a detective, and _all _detectives wear fedoras, idiots.)

After they opened presents, Alfred announced that he had a small dinner ready.

And, by small, the butler meant ham, turkey, steak, rolls, mashed potatoes, green beans, broccoli, carrots, cheesy potato slices, onion casserole, gravy (of course), corn, sausage, and sparkling wine. (Terrence had tried to nab some, receiving a sharp hand-slap from Bruce. His hand was still throbbing and red...)

They were all stuffed, but managed to have some dessert. Alfred had made some warm Pecan pie and sugar cookies shaped like stars, sheep, and bows.

After everyone was thoroughly stuffed, they settled for watching a Christmas movie.

Clark and J'onn sat at the bar to watch, while Bruce sat in the love-seat with Diana (he wouldn't admit it, but he thought the woman was sitting a bit closer than necessary). Alfred was busy in the kitchen, but Daphne helped him so that he managed to catch the last half of the film. Jason snuggled deeply into the recliner with Blaine under one arm and Dick under the other. Barbara sat at Daphne's feet (Daphne and Alfred sat on the other free couch), with Terrence at her side.

Clark cried through the whole thing, but when the little girl talked about the bells and angels and wings, he had to excuse himself.

After the movie, it was almost 10PM. So, Bruce and Jason carried the sleeping Blaine and Dick up the stairs and into their respective rooms. After arguing Terrence into bed, Bruce rounded on Barbara and Jason. "You two need your sleep, too."

"But _Bruuuuuuuce_," Barbara whined.

She was silence by the Bat-glare.

So, after the two teens were in bed, the adults sat around, chatting for a while. At 11PM, both Alfred and Daphne excused themselves for bed.

Then, Clark rounded on Bruce.

"Bruce, I need to talk to you about Terrence."

Bruce rolled his eyes. "Not this again-"

"Yes, this again."

Diana made a face. "What's wrong?"

Clark's mouth open and shut like a gold fish for a few moments, then he managed, "He's _twelve_!"

Bruce shook his head. "Thirteen. His birthday was two Fridays ago."

Clark bristled for a moment. "Nevermind that-"

"He's a teenager now, Clark, and fully aware that he can make his own decisions." Bruce's eyes narrowed as he growled, "So _deal_."

Clark, furious, left with a huff of air. The door opened and slammed shut, letting snow into the hall. J'onn mentally dried the floors, against Bruce's objections. At almost midnight, the Martian admitted, "I should be going. I have monitor duty at the Watchtower at midnight."

He excused himself, leaving Diana and Bruce alone.

There were a few moments of awkward silence, then Diana said, "Dick is an angel, Bruce. He seems to be very close to Blaine."

Bruce gave her his heart-breaking smirk. "Yeah, we call them 'the twins' sometimes. They seem to have a bond that I can't really explain... It's odd. They both have terrible pasts, yet they're like two balls of sunshine." He smiled as his mind wandered. "They brighten up my day, really..."

Then he remembered that Diana was right across from him. After a moment of being flustered, Bruce cleared his throat. "Uh... yes, they're very, very close..."

Diana giggled, drawing circles on the bar's marble counter. "And how are you feeling, with _five _kids, now? Last time I was here, you were at two!"

Bruce chuckled. "Yeah- three teens and two little kids... Really, though, Princess, it's a great feeling, being a father..." He hesitated a moment before saying, "But it's also terrifying..."

Diana frowned. "What do you mean?"

Bruce sighed, leaning back on his stool, his back boring into the counter. "Every time I hear from Jason's principle that he got into another fight, or Barbara, for that matter..." he smirked slightly. "Yeah, more Barbara than Jason... But, anyways, I always freak out, wondering what I've done wrong. It always ends up with tears or grounding, or both, but, with traumatized kids, I guess that's what you get..."

Diana quickly clasped Bruce's hand, drawing his eyes to hers. "Bruce..." she said softly. "What you're doing- for these kids... It's great, really-"

"I'm not doing it because I pity them," he snapped.

Diana scowled. "Who ever said that that's what I was saying?"

Bruce turned sharply. "I-"

"Bruce," Diana interrupted. "I apologize... I just meant that you're helping them, you know? They're becoming stronger- I mean, look at Jason! Oh, he's grown a _lot _since I last saw him... Not just physically, Bruce, though he's a lady-killer, I'm sure," she grinned, "but he's also a great deal _wiser _and _smarter _and, well just, _emotionally _stronger than the little kid I first met at the Watchtower. And, Barbara, oh Bruce, she's a fine young lady, and a fine warrioress, I'm sure."

Bruce smiled. "Yeah- she's a spitfire, all right."

Diana smiled back gently. "Yeah, and I'm sure Jason'll have a bat-a-rang at her first boyfriend's throat."

Bruce smirked at the image.

After several more moments, Diana sighed. "I guess I'd better get going, too."

She stood from her seat, and Bruce grabbed her arm. "Here, let me lead you to the door."

She grinned saucily. "Alright, Mr. Wayne."

They walked silently (besides the clicking of her shoes and the clacking of his) to the front door. When they got there, Bruce helped Diana pull on her heavy winter coat. "Thank you, Bruce."

"Don't mention it."

Bruce opened the door, but, suddenly, Diana stopped. She put a hand on Bruce's chest, eyes looking up to the ceiling. Bruce followed her gaze and felt his ears turn bright red.

"Mistletoe," she smirked.

Bruce's wide eyes met hers, and she smirked at him, a youthful mirth in her twinkling irises as she put a hand gently on the back of his neck.

"Princess," he began reluctantly.

Diana put a red-nailed finger on his lips. "Bruce, it's an American tradition, is it not?"

The billionaire, for the first time in his life, felt his knees turn to Jello. "R-right..."

Slowly, Diana closed her eyes and leaned upwards, her lips parted gently. Bruce let his eyes close as he allowed the Princess's lips to meet his.

It was gentle at first, unsure, even. Her lips were soft and warm, and his were rough and cold. Opposites attract, though.

Diana decided to advance.

She locked her fingers into Bruce's black hair, pulling gently on the strands at the nape of his neck. Bruce grunted softly in the back of his throat, and Diana suppressed the urge to grin.

Somehow, the billionaire's arms found their way wrapped around Diana's waist, fingering at her thighs. She shivered, pulling her other hand up to his chest as she fingered his shirt collar.

Bruce's teeth nibbled on her lower lip, and Diana gasped gently, opening her mouth slightly. Bruce grinned, pulling away gently before beginning to kiss and nibble on her lower lip. She gave a sultry sigh as he dominated her.

After several moments, the two pulled away, both of their eyes wide.

Diana broke the uncomfortable silence. "I- I guess I'll see you later, then, Bruce."

He only grunted softly.

_He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,_

_And filled all the stockings- then turned with a jerk,_

_And laying his finger aside of his nose,_

_And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose._

Despite being terribly upset by this Christmas being the first without his parents, Dick was still and eight-year-old boy. And, like any eight-year-old boy, he was up at the crack of dawn, ready to open his presents.

Running out of his room, Dick ran head-first into Blaine. "OUCH!"

"AUCK!"

They both fell and, after wiping away tears and the goose eggs on their heads, they both erupted into fits of giggles.

Barbara, Jason, and Terrence, hearing the screams of joy, dashed from their rooms. All were wiping sleep from their eyes, their faces paler than normal, squinting in the sunlight that came in from an open window.

"Dude!" Terrence yelped. "It's like... 2AM!"

Blaine giggled harder. "Yeah, try 7AM, smart-one."

Jason grinned and swooped Dick and Blaine into his arms. The two erupted with a typical adolescent's joyous cry. Then, Daphne emerged from the guest room. She was wide awake, dressed even. (Alfred must had woken her up earlier...)

"Good morning, guys!" she shrieked happily. "And MERRY CHRISTMAS!"

The six found themselves downstairs, eating a hearty breakfast of pancakes, muffins, toast, eggs, sausages, and, yes, hot cocoa.

At almost 9AM, Bruce _finally _floundered down the stairs. "Wha... Oh. Merry Christmas, kids."

He was still in his robe and slippers, bags under his eyes. Unshaven stubble littered his chin and upper lip, stretching as he yawned.

Terrence, Blaine, and Dick ran over and dragged Bruce through his breakfast, then over to the tree.

Opening presents when your 'father' was a billionaire was truly a treat.

Barbara got several dresses, hair accessories, and even a few video games (Cooking Mama, Mario World, ext...). Terrence got _all _video games, to his delight. Jason got a fancy pocket-watch, some nice shades, a new fedora, and a vest. Blaine received new dolls, a new tea-party set, and a few dresses. Bruce got several home-made items (cards, a picture-frame, ext...) and a new cashmere sweater from Jason. Alfred got hugs, kisses, and a week off from work, along with new sweaters and a fine, golden watch (that doubled as a Batman communicator, though Bruce didn't tell him until later, when Daphne was gone). Daphne got all clothes, to her _extreme _delight.

Dick got toy cars, planes, and a few pairs of shoes.

But, when he opened the last gift, he realized that it wasn't from anyone there.

"Pop Haley..." he gasped and ripped open the paper.

Inside was a scrapbook. The cover was brightly colored, rainbows and sunshine and lots of love.

But, inside, the memories out-shined everything.

His mother and father took up almost every page, bringing tears to the boy's eyes. He wiped them away quickly, though. No one asked about the odd pictures of elephants and fire-breathers and three certain aerialists, but they all smiled when they saw a baby picture of-

"Oh!" Barbara squealed. "Dickie! Oh, you were so cute! Just look at those cheeks-"

Dick moaned. "Barb!"

She rolled her eyes, stealing the book and looking over it again with Daphne.

A large hand took over Dick's shoulder, and he turned, smiling up into the navy eyes he had come to adore. "Yeah, Bruce?"

Bruce's lips curled upwards. "So, Dick, having a good Christmas?"

Dick looked over, seeing the fireplace blazing onto Barbara and Daphne's faces as they giggled at Dick's baby-pictures. Jason lay down under the tree, his eyes being illuminated by the flashing lights. Blaine was eating cookies across from Alfred as the two just simply mingled, and Terrence was hooking up a new video game. Outside the window, snow poured down on an already hefty two feet of the white stuff.

Dick, his eyes full of happiness, turned back to Bruce. He couldn't speak, a lump of melancholy joy forming in his throat. Tears in his eyes, the little Robin just nodded. _It's almost perfect..._

_He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,_

_And away they all flew, like the down of a thistle;_

_But I heard him exclaim ere he drove out of sight,_

"_Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!"_

**Oh, just to let you all know, i LOOOOOOOOVE BM/WW!**

**I REAAAAALLY hope that there's BM/WW in Young Justice!  
>PLEASE, HEAR MY WHIMS!<strong>

**oh, well...**

**ANWAYS: _2_ more chapters 'till Becoming Robin!**

BTW:

please review, or i'll set my man-eating communists on you...

(YAY! the communists are baaaaaaaack!) :0)


	15. MotherSon Dance

**Another long chappie. YAAAAY!**

**SO... here ya' go.**

**BTW: meesa own nuthin. (cept the usual)**

**AND... INTRODUCING: Shayera Hol (Hawkgirl) and John Stewart (Green Lantern)**

**I got this idea thanks to cooliochick5.**

**Thank you, coolio. :)**

Dick bit his lip as he forced himself into the backseat in between Terrence and Blaine. Up in the front was Barbara, going on and on and on about her day. Terrence and Blaine seemed to be in an argument. Alfred seemed annoyed.

"Miss Blaine and Master Terrence! One more word and I will _personally _make sure that neither of you can sit for a week!"

That shut them up, alright.

Barbara suddenly turned to Dick, her earmuffs still on from the short walk from campus to across the street where Alfred had picked her up in the Bentley.

"Hey, Boy Wonder. How was school?"

"Great," Dick lied between his teeth.

Barbara frowned and gave him 'the look'. Yeah, if you have an older sibling, you know that look. It's the look that says, 'I-know-you-are-lying-but-I-won't-say-anything-because-I-know-you-will-eventually-confess'.

_Yeah_, Dick thought as he fingered the straps on his backpack. _Like that's gonna happen..._

It took approximately fifteen minutes to get back to the Manor. Terrence and Blaine chased each other inside (more like Blaine chasing Terrence, threatening to do something that sounded impossible with his communicator) while Barbara followed calmly, sticking close to Dick as he shuffled behind. Alfred drove the Bentley away towards the garage.

"Jason's at school still," Barbara said as she and Dick went into the kitchen. She was trying to kick up a conversation. "He has detention."

Silence.

"Don't you want to know what for?"

"What for?"

Barbara rolled her eyes, her red hair falling into her face as she bent over a drawer in the fridge. "Fighting."

Dick cocked an eyebrow. Sure, Jason had gotten into one or two fights since he had been there, but it wasn't a normal thing. Barbara, now, was in at _least _one or two a month.

"Yeah, someone was talkin' smack about Bruce and stuff, and he just went off. Especially when the git started on you."

"Me?" Dick felt his eyes go wide.

Barbara, holding a carton of milk and a squirt bottle of Hershey's chocolate, grinned and sauntered over to the bar where Dick sat. "Yup. But don't freak- being a rich kid calls for rumors. And it only gets worse."

Dick snorted. "Thanks, Barb."

"No prob!"

She fixed herself up a glass of chocolate milk, then did the same for Dick. Barbara gulped down the concoction, but Dick only swirled his straw around.

Barbara sighed heavily, leaning over the bar, her hands propping up her chin. "What's wrong, Richard?"

Dick bit his lip, his little eyebrows furrowing. Suddenly, he rifled through his bag and pulled out a crumpled-up piece of paper, thrusting it at Barbara. She took it curiously, opening up the sphere with a satisfying crumple. Her eyes rapidly flickered over the parchment, her expression dimming with each word.

"Oh, Dickie..."

Dick sniffled, wiping away a tear. Barbara came around the counter quickly, taking his coat off for him as she shed her own as well. She turned the boy around and was stricken with grief to see the tears in his eyes. Gently, she pulled the boy into her arms and just cradled him as he cried, his hands firmly interwoven with her hair as his tears wet her sweater.

"Ssh, ssh, Dickie," she cooed. "It's okay... Everything's gonna turn up- you don't even have to go-"

"B-b-but if I d-d-d-don't everyone's gonna make f-f-fun of m-m-me!" the boy cried, trying to stifle his tears.

Barbara sighed heavily, biting the inside of her cheek as she danced around the room as if Dick was an infant.

Alfred suddenly appeared, as only Alfred can do. He frowned sincerely when he saw Dick crying.

Swiftly, he took the boy from Barbara and sat him down on the bar stool. Dick had succeeded in his silence by now, but was still struggling to stop the tear-flow. "Now, then, Master Dick, use your words."

Dick took in a deep breath and just looked at Alfred, those big, blue eyes boring holes into the man's head.

_No one _could look straight at that face and not melt.

Except maybe Alfred.

With a stern gaze, Alfred repeated, "Master Dick, use your-"

"Dance," the boy said softly, twiddling his thumbs.

Alfred cocked an eyebrow. "Pardon?"

"A- A mother-s-s-son d-dance..."

Alfred's mouth made an 'o' in recollection, and he nodded. Barbara stood off at the back, shifting from foot to foot.

Alfred pulled the boy's chin up so that Dick looked him in the eye. "I am sure, Master Dick, that I can find someone to take you. Would that be acceptable?"

Dick's eyes brightened for a moment, then turned sad. "Would- would my M-M- would she be okay with that?"

Alfred smiled warmly. "I think she'd be thrilled that you had someone to go with."

Dick chewed on it a moment, then nodded. "'K. I- I guess it'll be a _bit _of fun..."

….

….

The week came and went by like a snap.

On Saturday night, Dick found himself in an ivory dress shirt, black slacks, brown dress shoes, and a heavy-set coat for the way to the school.

Bruce smiled as he leaned against the doorway, watching Dick struggle with his tie. "C'mere," he said, trying not to chuckle, as he tied the bow.

"How do you _do _that?" the boy asked, astonished.

Bruce failed to hide his smile as he massaged Dick's tiny shoulders. "My dad taught me."

The black-haired boy's smile suddenly fell. He looked down at his shoes, suddenly enticed with the stitches in the fine leather. "B-Bruce?"

"Yes, Dick?"

"When does it stop hurting?"

Bruce sighed, got down on one knee, and pulled his foster-son to face him. "Dick," he spoke softly, "truly, the pain never goes away, but it numbs."

"When?"

Bruce shook his head. "It's different for everyone."

"How long did it take you?"

Fortunately, Bruce didn't have to answer that question, because the doorbell rang. Smiling, Bruce stood and flung Dick over his broad shoulders. Then boy squealed as Bruce dashed down the stairs, coming to a short stop in the main hallway.

Dick heard a high-pitched laugh, strong, yet gentle at the same time. He heard Alfred's grandfather-voice, then another laugh.

Bruce took Dick's hand. "C'mon."

They made their way to the front door, where Dick saw a very nice-looking woman. She had long, orange hair and deep green eyes. Her dress was long-sleeved and a mint green, matching well with her hair and makeup. She wore a rather thick white shawl around her back that covered from her shoulders to her waist.

Alfred turned and smiled. "Master Dick, may I introduce-"

"Shayera," the woman input, sticking out a hand. Dick took it gently, and the woman laughed. She suddenly reached out to ruffle his hair-

Dick darted away, and she froze. "I- I'm sorry-"

"No," Dick said, frowning at himself. "I'm sorry. You- you didn't do anything... I'm just nervous."

He pulled it smoothly- Shayera expected nothing.

Shayera pulled Bruce aside a moment as Alfred re-did Dick's tie.

"Bruce," she hissed, "why didn't you ask Di?"

"She had a gala in England," he said. "And, anyways, I thought you'd like a chance to get out of the Watchtower. Plus, Dick needs more... older women in his life."

Shayera scowled playfully. "How old do you think I am?"

Bruce thought a moment. "43?"

She punched his arm, earning a grunt. "Try 29, genius."

"Ready to go?" Dick asked, coming up behind Shayera. He noticed that her shawl was sort of... lumpy.

"Ready," she sang with a grin, taking the boy's arm. "Here." She pulled his hand to the crook of her elbow. "That's how a gentleman escorts a lady."

Dick blushed, and Shayera laughed, a twinkling bell laugh, much like his mother's, only a bit deeper and stronger. This woman seemed more fierce than his mother, stronger, too, physically, of course. He noticed that her forearms and biceps were rather... muscular.

Alfred opened the door to the Bentley (Dick had absolutely refused to have a limo drop him off at his Elementary school.), motioning for Shayera to get in the front. She shook her head, opening the back door. "I think I'll sit with Dick."

A silent, awkward fifteen and a half minutes later, Dick and Shayera were walking into the gymnasium. The lights were dimmed, and several spot-lights glowed blue and turquoise all over the floors and walls. A song was playing loudly, over the voices of several mothers teasing their sons into dancing.

"Wanna dance?" Shayera shouted over the music. Dick shook his head and simply led the woman over to a free table. They sat there in silence until Shayera started to feel uncomfortable. "So..." she began slowly (the music was quieter in the dark corner). "Is your full name Richard?"

He nodded.

"Got a last name?"

"Grayson," he mumbled shyly.

Shayera grinned. "My last name is Hol. Shayera Hol."

Dick nodded, licking his lips. Shayera sighed and looked at her nails. "So... are you hungry? Cake?"

Dick shrugged, and Shayera took that as a 'yes'. "Be back in a sec- wait. Vanilla or Chocolate?"

"Chocolate..." the boy replied so innocently that it made Shayera want to giggle.

"'K. Choc-O-lata' it is."

And she walked off, her lumpy shawl sweeping the floor after her.

Just then, some boys (whose mothers were gossiping in the corner) came over and made a circle around Dick.

The acrobat immediately recognized Tommy Pierce- a fifth-grader who lived to make every younger kid's life a living Hell. He had shaggy red hair, braces, and a constantly broken nose from all the fights he got into. Around him stood Morgan Derek (haha), a Black boy with a shaved head and a frown, another fifth-grader; Andrew Grace, a brown-haired, freckle-faced fourth-grade bully; Dominic Hales, an Asian boy (fifth-grader, again) with a fierce scowl that Dick was sure he had been born with; and finally, the ginormous Avery Ferris, a black-haired, black-eyed boy who should have been in sixth grade, but was only a fourther.

The five boys all began to glare at Dick, and Tommy laughed loudly. "Wow, _Grayson_! Who came with _you_ tonight? I mean- isn't your Mommy dead?"

Morgan rolled his eyes. "You mean _Mamica_!"

Everyone laughed.

Tears formed in Dick's eyes. What was so funny?

"So..." Dominic began, slamming a hand down on the table in front of Dick. The boy jumped, making Dominic smile evilly. "So, _Grayson_, which girlfriend of your 'daddy's' did you bring tonight?"

Dick stammered. "She- she's not- she's not his g-girlfriend..."

"Oh!" Avery chuckled. "So... they're one-nighters, eh?"

Dick didn't understand the statement, but, obviously, the other boys did. They all howled with laughter.

"Shut up!" Dick growled.

Tommy suddenly froze. He glowered at Dick, eyes on fire. "_What _did you say to me, orphan-boy?"

The comment hurt, more than anything Dick had ever been called before. _Don't cry! _he forced himself to think. _Don't cry, don't cry, DON'T CRY!_

Avery stood back, crossing his arms over his chest as he smirked maniacally. "I bet your parents didn't even _want _you!"

Okay, now _that _was too far.

Dick kicked himself off of the chair, sending it flying backwards, knocking over Morgan. He latched onto Avery's head like a spider monkey, hitting his back as hard and as rapidly as he could. Women started to scream things like, "That _monster_!" and "Get that boy _away from them_!"

Andrew pulled Dick off of Avery, sucker-punching the boy in his face. Dick felt blood rush out of his mouth as his lip split open, but he ignored it, doing a back-flip to get back on his toes. Dominic and Morgan came from both sides, and Dick grabbed either boys' shoulders, doing a splits in the air, kicking both boys in their guts, knocking them out of the fight.

He pushed off of Andrew's chest like a spring-board, launching the freckle-face into Tommy. Both fell.

That only left-

Avery appeared out of nowhere, his meaty hand encasing itself around Dick's tiny throat, cutting off his arm supply. Dick's face turned blue, and he gasped for air as Avery threw him into the wall. _Where is this kid's mom? _he thought.

"HEY!" came a very, _very _satisfying voice.

Avery suddenly dropped Dick, and the boy landed with a _thud _on his rump. He choked on his air, spit and saliva coming out along with a drop of blood. He looked up and saw a very, _very _red-faced Shayera. She had her hands placed firmly on her hip, and her hand seemed to be fiddling for a handle that wasn't there, strapped to her hip.

"Excuse me, _young man_," she spat, "but I do believe that assault is illegal..."

A red-haired, very fat woman appeared, her hands going onto Avery's shoulders. "ARE YOU THREATENING MY SON?" she boomed.

Shayera's eyes widened in rage. "Ex_cuse _me? Did you see what he did to that boy?"

_That boy_... Dick thought sadly.

The red-haired woman frowned sharply. "Well, _obviously _your _son _attacked my son first!"

Shayera got nose-to-nose with the woman, shoving Avery out of the way. Her teeth were gritted firmly, and, if she was a cartoon, Dick swore steam could have come from her ears. "I'll have you know-" and she said a very naughty word "-that Richard is an honest, innocent boy! _Your son _is a vile, evil little git, and I'll shove my foot up you a-"

"Miss," came a low voice. The principle, and a security guard, appeared. The cop man was fingering his baton. The principle frowned distastefully at Shayera. "Please leave."

Shayera looked like she wanted to do something naughty with her foot, but she slowly calmed down, trying to mask her fury. "Fine," she snapped and turned over to Dick.

The boy's blue eyes were watering from his earlier lack of air. Shayera swiftly pulled him to his feet- a bit forcefully- and dragged him behind her as she muttered swear words under her breath.

They got outside in the high-packed snow in moments. Dick _swore _that the snow within a two-foot radius was melting under Shayera's gaze. The sky was already pitch-black, the stars out but unseen past the busy city lights. The street was barren, covered with ice and sand, newly placed for the morning rush.

Shayera continued to mumble.

Dick felt tears come to his eyes. _Don't cry... Don't cry... Don't-_

A whimper escaped.

Shayera turned sharply and saw the saddest sight she had ever seen- a blue eyed, messy-haired boy in a little suit, tears running down his face, accompanied by brown bruises on his neck.

She instantly found herself on one knee, her dress being muddied by the snow- not that she cared. She _hated _dresses, but she had wanted to get to know Bruce's new kid.

"Dick..." she crooned softly, wiping hair from his tear-stained face. His eyes were squeezed shut, trying to stop the flow, and his jaw was set firmly. Shayera saw blood dripping onto his chin, and she inwardly growled. Taking her finely manicured hand, she brushed off the blood gently and grabbed a handkerchief from a seemingly invisible pocket.

"Here," she said. "Put a bit of pressure on it."

He nodded and did so.

Shayera shivered in the cold, biting wind. She stood, licking her red-coated lips and blinking as snowflakes hit her eyelashes.

She turned back to the boy to see that he had stopped crying and succeeded at bloodying up her handkerchief. "Let's get outta here, kid."

"W-We don't have a c-c-car," the boy stammered sadly.

Shayera chuckled, cocking a hip out, and Dick looked at her curiously. "He didn't tell you where he knows me from, did he?"

Dick did an Alfred. (1) "Um..."

Shayera chuckled again and looked to her left, then her right, before dropping her shawl.

Dick's mouth hung open.

She had _wings_. _Beautiful _wings.

They were very, very large and spanned out almost ten feet when she flexed them. The feathers faded from a deep brown at the bottom and up to a deep tan, then a white-speckled gold on top. She turned in a circle, showing him her bare shoulder blades. Right in between them were where her feathered wings met flesh.

Quickly, the woman turned back around, pulling down her bun and shaking out her hair. "I'm Hawkgirl," she said, sticking out a hand. "Pleasure to meet you, Richard."

"It's Dick," he grumbled, taking her hand gruffly...

She giggled. "I either call you Richard or Kid."

"I'd prefer Kid."

Shayera frowned.

Something had _really _hurt this kid in his past.

"Let's blow this Popsicle stand, Kid, and get some ice-cream."

Dick frowned pointedly. "Ice-cream, Shayera? It's like- fifty below!"

She giggled again, annoying the boy deeply. "Who cares? C'mon."

And just like that, she grabbed Dick's waist in one hand and her shawl in the other.

A piercing scream of glee ran through the night as Dick flew for the first time in _months_.

"This is awesome!" he cried, all tears gone.

Shayera beamed down at the boy as she flew over the city. "Like it?"

Dick only nodded.

The flashing lights of the city glowed miles below in the black streets. Dark clouds above them snowed harder as they were in the air, going higher and higher. Dick's eardrums popped, and he winced slightly. Shayera saw this and flew lower.

"I haven't flown in forever..."

"Waddaya mean?"

The boy didn't answer.

….

….

Shayera _finally _found something that made the boy smile.

"Superman Ice-Cream?" she asked the clerk, who nodded.

"Yes Ma'am! Vanilla and red and blue bubblegum all mixed into one savory concoction!"

Dick's eyes glowed at the name 'Superman' and, smiling inwardly, Shayera payed the extra five bucks for a super-hero ice-cream flavor.

They sat down at a booth, right next to the front window where they could hear the bell chingling for late-night eaters and see the lights of Gotham city outside. You could even see the glowing sign 'WAYNE' from across town.

Shayera sucked up her milk shake and watched as Dick easily downed his first scoop. "Another?"

He nodded. "Please."

After he got another scoop, Shayera dug her teeth in.

"I understand."

He paused just long enough to look at her and frown before turning back to his ice-cream. "What do you mean?"

She turned back to her milk shake. "I only mean I know what its like to be an orphan."

She was so blunt that Dick almost dropped his ice-cream all over his good pants. _Thank God! Alfred woulda' killed me!_

She looked up at him, batting long black lashes. "My father was killed in a war, and my mother was a hostage. She died in a massacre. So I understand."

Dick nodded gently. "I- I'm sorry..."

She shrugged, taking another deep sip. "'Sall right. Happened a long, _long _time ago."

"I thought you were only 29!"

Her eyes snapped up. "You-"

"Sorry..." he murmured.

Shayera just shook her head. "Bats..." Dick had a tiny smile on his face.

Shayera sat back, licking her straw as she surveyed the empty cup in her hand. "You hate it when everyone tries to dodge the subject, don't you? It makes you feel like a China doll, like they're scared they'll break you if they even try to talk about it. Even indirectly."

Dick nodded silently.

"And you just want to move on."

Dick's head snapped up. "I'm _not _going to forget them!"

Heads turned over to the table, but Shayera ignored them. She hunkered down to see eye-to-eye with the boy, who was blushing. "Kid, I'm not asking you to forget them. I'm asking you if you're ready to talk."

….

….

And they did.

By the time they were done, it was well past midnight. Bruce was going to be ticked, and Shayera knew it. But she knew Dick now, more than Bruce probably did.

She knew his favorite color was red, that his birthday was the first day of Spring (hence why his mom called him _Robin_), that he had nursed a sick sparrow back to health when he was six, that he could breathe fire, that he was an aerialist, that his mother had blue eyes like his, and that he got his hair from his dad.

They also talked about his senses.

He told her about how he could hear their bones crunch.

How he could smell the blood.

He could see the torn, sparkly fabric.

He could feel the wet, warm liquid.

He could taste the puke that rose in his throat.

Shayera listened the whole time, being blunt with him as he was blunt with her.

Dick sat back in his seat, sighing. "T-Thanks, Shayera... I- I really needed that."

She grinned. "No prob, Kid."

Turning to her cell phone, Shayera swore. **12:23**

"I'd better get you home."

But, when they got out into the snow- rather, a fierce blizzard.

Shayera drew Dick into her arms as she dashed into an alley, pulling her shawl around the boy. "I CAN'T FLY IN THIS!" she shouted over the harsh winds.

"BUT THE MANOR IS ALL THE WAY ACROSS THE CITY!" Dick cried out.

Shayera thought a moment, the wind chilling her body fiercely. She felt Dick shiver harshly, and she pulled him tighter to her chest, lifting him off the ground.

Suddenly, she had an idea.

Hefting the boy to her hip, she pushed her comm unit.

"JOHN! CAN I GET A LIFT?"

….

….

Less than two minutes later, an eerie green glow cast over the boy and winged-woman who huddled in the alley, still. They had to wait outside, after all, or risk giving out John's identity.

Dick gaped when the Green Lantern landed in front of him. The man was tall, broad-shouldered, and had deep brown skin. His hair was shaved down military-style, and he had a small black goatee on his chin. His eyes glowed neon green, just like his black and green costume. On his left hand was a ring that glowed even brighter than his whole body. He seemed warm enough in the harsh winds.

Extending his arm, the Green Lantern enclosed Dick and Shayera in a green bubble. Warmth immediately flowed to Dick's fingers, nose, and ears, and the boy sighed contentedly. "Thanks, Mr. Lantern, sir!"

The man chuckled and responded in a deep voice, "No problem, kid. The name's John, though. John Stewart. And I'm guessing you're my girlfriend's new little friend?"

Dick blushed. "I'm not _that _little."

Shayera nudged him playfully. "Keep telling yourself that, tiger."

"Hang on," John ordered Dick. The boy grabbed tightly onto the Green Lantern's waist, holding Shayera's hand with his whole other free arm. She giggled as the boy watched in wonder as John rose from the ground.

"COOL!"

The young couple smiled at each other as they flew over Gotham. It was a much slower pace than he could have gone, but John wanted a) for the boy not to get sick and b) for the boy to get the _full _'Green Lantern' experience.

"So..." John began playfully. "Dick, you decided to mack on my girl, now?"

Dick blushed, showing off his bright blue eyes as he stared at Shayera pleadingly. The woman punched John's arm. "Ouch!"

"You've got some pretty tough competition, then, Johnny Boy!"

It took them about five minutes to get back to the Manor, and, when they did, they were greeted by eight different people- Bruce, looking angry; Alfred, looking _furious_; Barbara, looking worried; Jason, looking upset; Terrence, looking amused; Blaine, looking tearful; and, yes, J'onn, who looked stoic, and Superman, who looked as worried as Barbara and as upset as Jason.

Bruce saw Green Lantern first, and his anger melted into rage. John landed and, Shayera, holding a sleeping little boy, appeared behind him. John slowly let down the shield, and Bruce ran forward, taking Dick from Shayera's arms gently. "You were supposed to have him back by _ten_," Bruce hissed, as to not wake the boy. "I called J'onn and Clark because I couldn't locate his tracker-"

"You put a tracker on your kid?" John asked incredulously.

Bruce just gave him the Bat-glare.

Shayera rolled her eyes. "Chill, Bruce. Tiger-boy's _fine_, and he had loads of fun!"

Sadly, Bruce then saw the bruising on Dick's neck.

His eyes on fire, he looked up to Shayera. "You have some explaining to do, _Hawkgirl_."

She giggled nervously, turning to grab John's arm, but the man was already up in the air, a green blip amongst black.

"TRAITOR!"

**(1) doing an "Alfred" is qualified by cocking one eyebrow to the ceiling while the other squeezes your other eyes almost fully shut. :)**

**'Cause Elementary Schoolers _totally _choke each other.**

**SEE! i can joke on myself!**

**I HAVE NO EGO!**

**... maybe...**

**V**

**not even gonna say anything**

**V**

**%^$#* IT! I said something!**

**V**


	16. New Year's Vacation

**i own nothing besides the usual. No duhr.**

Terrence ran off the plane screaming like a mad-man, whirling one of Barbara's neon pink thongs in the air as if it was a war present. The young, red-headed teen was chasing after him with a tazer. Jason came off the plane snickering as Bruce came off, holding his head and popping anti-migraine pills. Blaine and Dick played tag all the way down, weaving in and out of Jason's and Bruce's legs.

"I'm gonna get you!" the girl teased.

Dick screamed and climbed up Jason's back like a little spider monkey. Sadly, Blaine did the same, and this sent Jason face-first into the sand.

Oh, by the way, the residents of Wayne Manor (minus Alfred, who was in England) were on one of Bruce's private islands, somewhere near Fiji, for a New Year's vacation.

Barbara finally caught up to Terrence, digging the tazer into his neck. He fell, unconscious and vibrating softly. Grinning, Barbara stuffed the undergarments into her pocket. "Sleep well, Terry. Sleep well..."

Bruce hefted the boy's body over his shoulder as they all walked up a long, marble staircase into the mansion on top of a cliff.

Looking out, it was like a fantasy.

The ocean glittered in the distance, stretching farther than the eye could see. The setting sun beat down on the water, turning it rainbow colors as it rippled in the slight wind. The sand was a deep tan, mixed with stark white and pebbles. Larger stones, boulders, and several fossils and shells stood against the rock cliff and out farther, near the water. Jason sighed, taking in a deep whiff of the oceanic air. A small hand tugged on his, and the teen looked down into Dick's bright blue eyes.

"Jay?"

"Yes, Dick?"

The boy flushed for a moment, then said, "Can- can you teach me to swim while we're here?"

Jason frowned pointedly. "You don't know how to swim?"

Dick shrugged. "There- there wasn't much time, moving around like how we did and all..." His tiny, sandled foot kicked a pebble over the edge. Jason's grip on Dick's hand tightened as he realized how close the boy was to the edge.

"Sure, Dickie. On one condition."

Dick frowned suspiciously. "What...?"

"You teach me to do a back-flip."

Dick's face turned purple, and he stammered, "Sure! But, it'll take a lot of practice! I mean, uh, not that you can't do it or anything, but-"

He was interrupted by Jason laughing. He was actually about to ruffle Dick's hair, but stopped himself shortly. _Right... He hates that._

Dick suddenly pulled Jason's hand into his hair and forced the boy to ruffle it up. Looking down, shocked, Jason watched as the smaller boy pushed his older 'brother's' large, calloused hand against his cheek.

A grin painted itself on the vigilante's face as he pulled Dick onto his shoulders, coddling his legs. "Okay, Dickie. Time to get dressed and hit the beach!"

….

….

The boys (and Bruce) all wore swim trunks. Jason's were tie-dye, to Bruce's distaste; Terrence's were neon green (don't ask); and Bruce's were a simple black. Dick's swim trunks were the smallest size available, but Jason and Bruce had to get creative and tie the strings around the tiny boy's waist to help keep them up.

To Bruce's extreme hatred, Barbara wore a yellow string bikini. Blaine wore a simple two-piece, floral, princess swimsuit.

The youngest kids both screamed when they got to the water front, running into it and splashing the salt water into each other's faces. Terrence growled loudly, "Hey! Wait for me!" and ran in, attacking both violently with the large waves he made as he stomped around.

Bruce chuckled and threw out a towel before lying down and placing on sunglasses. The warm sun, or what was left of the sun as it went out, beat down on his bare chest and face, warming the man to an extent.

Jason and Barbara dug the tiki-poles into the ground, and, with a flicker of Bruce's lighter, Jason had them blazing at _least _three feet into the air. Then, the teen dashed out to where his younger 'siblings' were playing. "ARGH!" he cried, pulling Blaine over his shoulder and tossing her gently into deeper water. She came up, coughing out water, but grinning, still. Then, Jason grabbed Terrence and threw him- a bit rougher and a bit farther- into the water. After several moments, Terrence's shaved head appeared, his green-brown eyes angry.

"I'm gonna get you for that, Holmes!" he cried, shaking a fist in the air.

Jason waved it away. "Yeah, yeah."

Suddenly, there came a loud screech. Everyone's heads turned to Barbara (including Bruce's, as the billionaire had snapped to attention at the squeal), who was standing on a boulder as she shook her hand in the air violently. "CRAB, CRAB, CRAB, CRAB, CRAB-"

Bruce came over and, leaning down, allowed some water to float into his hand. He stood, gently taking the quarter-sized 'beast' into his palm and poured the water over it. It let go, and Barbara began to suck on her finger furiously as Bruce put the crab on his shoulder, just to annoy Barbara. "See, Barb?" he teased, "Harmle- AH, SHI-" and he completed that word with a 'T'.

Jason howled with laughter as Bruce danced around the beach, a baby crab dangling from his ear. Dick giggled in his tenor voice, and Blaine almost fell over from laughing so much. Terrence _did _fall over.

After a good five minutes' laugh, everyone went back to what they were doing before as Bruce nursed his bleeding ear.

Blaine threw her tiny body onto Terrence's back, and the Black boy allowed his body to go underwater for a long minute as he swam up and down the shoreline. He came up, grinning at Blaine's purple face. "Again!" she shrilled.

And they continued to 'Whale' **(1)**.

Jason turned to Dick, who was watching tentatively as the two got into very, _very _deep (for the eight-year-old) water. Terrence had to tread, and Blaine began to climb onto his shoulders. He went under, and Dick gasped, eyes wide.

Jason put a comforting hand on the boy's shoulder as he sat in the shallows, the water lapping at his chest. "Dick, just watch."

It took almost a whole minute, but Terrence got a hold of himself, and he allowed Blaine to ride piggy-back as he did a dead-man **(2) **before kicking himself out of the water, sending Blaine back towards Jason. She laughed as she bobbed up and down, treading.

A sigh of relief could be heard as Dick's chest deflated. "That was scary..."

Jason chuckled. "Not really, Dickie, if you know how to swim."

"But I don't!" the boy wailed.

Jason suddenly hefted Dick onto his back and swam out to ten-feet water. "You'll learn soon."

….

….

Barbara was tanning on her back, a good five feet away from Bruce, who was lying on his stomach, snoring, drool coming out of his mouth. Barbara rolled her eyes. "Nasty old man..." But, hey, at least he was getting _some _sleep- he hardly _ever _did, being Batman and all. Barbara would have to get on her _knees _to thank Black Canary and Green Arrow for watching over Gotham for the next week.

A sharp scream, one of bloody terror, rang out.

Bruce suddenly was on his feet, running out towards the water. Barbara followed.

Blaine's eyes were blood-shot, red, and puffy. Her mouth was open in a wail, and tears streamed down her cheeks. Bruce easily was at her side in a millisecond, running his hands over her arms and stomach to check for injuries. "Blaine, Blaine what-"

She cried out in pain when Bruce's hand touched her calf.

Bruce pulled her onto the shore, out of the icy water, and sat her down. Terrence and Barbara ran over and crouched next to the little girl. On Blaine's leg was what looked like a scrape with blisters all over. Her tiny calf was bleeding lightly, and there was a sharp _something _inside her leg. Bruce swore under his breath and pulled some sand into his hand. He drizzled it over the wound, and Blaine let out a reluctant cry of pain.

"Barbara," came the sudden, stern, Daddy-Bats voice. "Run up to the house and get some apple cider, tweezers, and rubbing alcohol."

Barbara bolted, and Terrence piped up, "What can I do?"

"Keep her calm," Bruce ordered.

Terrence took Blaine's hand, trying not to look at her grizzly wound. "Blainey? Sparrow, Sparrow, c'mon, look at me."

Blaine's puffy, red eyes turned to face Terrence, and he saw that her shoulders were shaking with the pain. "Can she lay down?" he asked Bruce, who nodded. The man was still dripping sand onto the burn-like wound.

Terrence put a gentle hand on Blaine's shoulder and leaned her back onto the sand. Her long, white-blonde hair lay all around her like a halo, sticking to the sand.

Bruce looked up and-

"Where's Jason?"

….

….

Jason held Dick's stomach with one hand, and his back with another. "Kick, and use your arms like a windmill's, your hands cupped slightly, like how we practiced."

Dick did so, and Jason encouraged him, "Good job, Dickie. I'm gonna let go-"

"NO!" the boy cried out.

Jason sighed. "Alright. Only for a few more minutes."

"No..." Dick's lip quivered. "I- I don't wanna drown!"

Jason bit back a chuckle. "Dickie, you're not gonna drown. I'm right here, and I'm standing at my waist in water. Do you _really _think I'd let you drown?"

"Maybe."

"Dick-"

"Okay, no!"

Jason grinned with a hint of maliciousness. "Okay then-"

And he let go.

Dick screamed and floundered for a moment, but Jason's voice rang out, "Relax, Dick. It's okay- just kick your legs and move your arms, remember, rotate, rotate, rotate, rotate. Doggy Paddle, Dickie, Doggy Paddle."

Dick did so, and-

"I'm swimming!"

Jason beamed with pride as Dick made several circles around him in the gentle waters. "Great job, Robin! Great, _great _job! It took me _ages _to learn to swim."

"Really?" Dick asked as he latched onto Jason's swim trunks. The teen pulled Dick to his chest, kissing his head. "_Really_."

Birds screeched above them, and Jason looked up. It was getting darker, but he really, _really _wanted to show Dick his Place.

"You wanna go on an adventure?" he asked.

Dick's face lit up, then got suspicious. "What _kind _of adventure?"

But Jason didn't answer. Instead, he pulled Dick onto his back and cried out, "Hold your breath and hang on!" before diving under the rippling water.

Dick had a huge bubble in his mouth, and he wanted to open his eyes, but he didn't. The water would sting them, and he didn't want that.

Bubbles gently lifted from the boy's nose as he breathed out. He tapped Jason's shoulder, and the teen emerged, allowing the child to get a whiff of fresh air.

As he gently rubbed his eyes dry with one hand, Dick looked around- and almost screamed.

They were at _least _a hundred feet away from shore. Jason was treading water easily as he drifted with the waves to the left, towards a large cliff. Dick scrambled up onto Jason's shoulders, making the teen go under.

"DI-" Bubbles cut him off as water rushed into Jason's lungs. He coughed under the water, trying to unlatch Dick's tiny fingers from what little hair the teen had. "DICK!" he screamed into the water and black spots appeared before his eyes.

Dick held on tightly above water, but suddenly, Jason squeezed his wrists tightly, digging his thumb into the child's pressure-point beneath the two bones in his wrist. Dick cried out and fell into the water, getting a full mouth-full of the salty liquid.

Jason surfaced, coughing and holding back puke as he turned frantically in the water. His well-trained eye saw Dick underneath, and he dived.

Five feet.

Ten feet.

Twelve feet.

_Holy crap! _Jason's mind screamed as he grabbed onto the thrashing boy's wrist, pulling him to the surface.

Dick held onto Jason's neck in a death-grip, tears and water coming off of his face. "J-J-J-J-Jay... D-Don't let m-m-m-me d-die!"

Jason treaded the water with one arm as he tightly gripped Dick's swim trunks with the other, keeping the boy to his chest. "Dick," he stammered, trying to take in some air. "Dick, you're _not _going to die. We're safe, see?"

Dick's eyes slowly turned from Jason's neck to the water, which was now fully calm. "See?" Jason crooned as he ran his fingers through Dick's wet hair. "Calm down, Dickie... We're almost there, then we can break before I swim you back, 'K?"

Dick nodded, again pulling himself into Jason's neck. The teen sighed and half-paddled towards the cliff.

….

….

Barbara came bolting down the side of the cliff. She saw Blaine, rather pale-faced, and Bruce, his hands bloody and sand-covered. Terrence looked about to faint, holding onto Blaine's hand with his right, and brushing her hair from her face with his left.

Barbara handed the stuff to Bruce, who quickly opened the cider. He poured it onto Blaine's leg, earning a scream of pain from the girl. Barbara saw Bruce flinch. He would _never _be ready for his baby girl and baby boy to be crime fighters.

Brushing the sand from Blaine's leg, Bruce took the rubbing alcohol and sanitized the tweezers. "Barbara," he ordered, "Sorry, but can you go get some bandages-"

"On it!" the girl shouted before bolting for the mansion.

Bruce tentatively eyed Blaine's bleeding, swollen leg, and saw the stinger. Gently, he pulled the jelly-like string from the side of her leg, trying to block out the girl's moans and whimpers.

Finally, he had the foot-long string detached from her calf. The burn stretched from her ankle to knee, as the stinger was so long. "Jelly Fish," he said to Barbara, who had just reached them. She leaned for ward, panting heavily.

Bruce again poured some cider onto Blaine's leg, then gently brushed some alcohol onto it. She whimpered once more, as he was wrapping up her leg. Then, she jumped up and hugged him tightly, crying into his shoulder.

"Ssh, Blaine," Bruce murmured softly. "It's okay... Ssh..." He looked over to the sky, which was almost pitch-black by now. "Barbara, hang out here while I take Blaine to the house. See if you can find Jason and Dick."

Barbara paled in the thin lights that the tiki-torches offered. "You can't find them?"

Bruce shrugged. "Jason probably just wandered off-"

"But Dick _can't swim_!"

Bruce's face got serious _fast_. "Take the jet ski out, Barbara, and take Terrence to spot you. Find them, bring them back. Now."

And he stormed up to the mansion, Blaine in his arms.

….

….

Jason shook Dick awake (_That kid can sleep anywhere!_) when he reached the Place.

"Dickie... Rise and sh_iiiiiiii_ne."

Dick moaned. "What?"

Jason sat him down on a large boulder and watched as the acrobat's eyes flickered open. Suddenly, the boy was wide awake, his face bright and happy, curious and interested, fearful and excited.

"WOAH!"

They were in a cave, Jason standing in the tiny pool where the entrance (about two feet up from the water, five feet long) was. He gestured under it and said, "This is the entrance and the exit, my young friend."

But Dick wasn't listening.

Instead, he was looking all around the cavern, taking in the sparkling stalactites on the 'ceiling', and the stalagmites and boulders behind them that were above-land. A few glowing rocks were under the water, sending rainbow colors out into the black waters, illuminating the coral and algae and few salt-water minnows that were there. "Cool!" the boy cheered. Jason grinned.

"Yup! This is the Place, capital 'P', please. My Place, my place. No one knows about it, expect me and now, _you_."

Dick felt prideful. "Not- not even _Bruce_?"

Jason chuckled, shaking his head. "Nope- well, he _might _know- he's Batman after all, but I haven't told him or ever seen him here."

Dick nodded slowly, still taking in the sights. Suddenly, he saw, about ten feet away from the ocean's edge, a little pool of bubbling water. His face lit up, and he dashed towards it. Just as he was about to stick his hand inside, however, Jason caught his wrist. "I wouldn't if I were you, kid. That's water'll scald you bald."

Dick cocked an eyebrow, then smiled. "How do _you _know?"

"Personal experience," the boy mumbled.

Dick took in his surroundings one more. Then, he saw something odd...

"Jay?" he asked, stumbling tiredly towards the cavern wall. "What's this?"

There was an intention of a little hawk in the blue rock. Jason smiled. "Yeah- I was thirteen when I found this place. Carved my signature into it."

Dick looked around the floor, his eyes peering over ever crack and crevasse in the floor. Jason crossed his arms over his muscular chest. "Whatcha lookin' for?"

Dick suddenly leaped back to the drawing, his hand reaching up with a very sharp rock (_Lord help us..._) and drew-

"A robin."

Jason grinned and traced the little robin with his fingers. "Robin... A hawk, a robin, a bat, a sparrow, another bat, and-" he chuckled, "-a ghost."

Dick 'oh'ed. "Oooooooh... So _that's _what a Wraith is!"

Jason laughed loudly.

Dick suddenly sighed, trying to hide it from his older 'brother'. "Okay," Jason sighed. "Let's go, chum."

"But I'm not t-_iiiiiiiiiiiii_-red..." the boy yawned.

Jason rolled his eyes. "'K. Whatever you say, Robin."

….

….

Barbara thrashed around the water's surface, peering into the black, illuminated only a bit by the flashlight that was built-in to the front of the jet-ski. Suddenly, she saw a tuft of brown hair and two pairs of blue eyes.

"JASON!" she bellowed, coming to a stop. Terrence pulled Dick from Jason's arms, chuckling inwardly at the teen's frightened eyes.

"Yeah, B-Barb?"

"Blaine's been stung by a jelly fish, and I've been looking for you for the past five hours!"

"Try ten minutes," Terrence mumbled. Barbara smacked his head, ignoring the 'Ouch!' she got in return.

"Get... On..." she growled to Jason, who complied without any more bickering.

….

….

Dick opened the door to the room Blaine was sleeping in. It was plain, white-walled and white-carpeted, nothing like her room back at the Manor. There, on the king-sized bed, was the little angel of a twin he had come to love. Her legs were hidden under the sheets and comforter, a fan billowing air onto the blankets, near where her burnt leg should be.

Slowly, the shaggy-haired kid tip-toed inward and snuggled into the covers with his 'sister'.

"Ugh... Robin?"

Dick blushed. "Sorry, Sparrow. Didn't mean to wake you up..."

She shrugged lightly, yawning and stretching an arm around Dick's shoulders. He hugged her tightly. "No prob, Robin. Anyways, I need someone to cuddle with."

Robin stuck out his tongue. "Cuddle is a nasty word."

"Is not."

"Is too."

"Is not."

"Is too."

"Is not."

"Is too."

"Is not."

"Is too."

"Is not."

"Is not."

"Is too."

Blaine hit the pillows. "Dang it! You tricked me, jerk!"

"You're a jerk."

"Your camel's a jerk."

Dick made a face. "Wha-"

"Something I heard Terrence say."

"Oh. That explains it."

The two fell asleep hugging and giggling.

….

….

The week passed by too quickly.

In that time, Jason had taken Dick and Terrence to the Place (he labeled it as a Guy's Place later on) several times, sometimes even more than once in a day!

Thanks to Bruce's awesomeness with medicine, Blaine's leg was fully healed by Wednesday, and she was back out in the water by Thursday.

Barbara went deep-sea fishing with Bruce, Dick, and Blaine and caught a sword-fish, which Bruce and Jason taught Dick and Terrence to clean. ("Gross!" "Man up, Terry!" "Ouch, Dick! Don't hit me!" "Then be a man!" "You're eight!" "AND THREE QUARTERS!")

Barbara and Blaine bonded with nail-polish, braids, and cookies.

Then, on the last night, they made a _huge _bonfire.

Dick roasted his marshmallow on a metal rod that once was a clothes hangar. (Bruce had forgotten the roasting sticks at home. -_- ) It caught fire, and the boy squealed. Quickly, Barbara pulled it from him and blew it out, leaving a rather crispy, gooey mess on the ex-hangar. "Thanks, Barb."

"No prob, Rob."

"Hey! That rhymes!"

"SHUT UP, TERRENCE!"

"Bruce, Dick has anger-management issues!"

"Terrence, shut up and eat your s'more."

"Yes, sir..."

Blaine ate only the marshmallows (un-burnt) and the chocolate, until Bruce told her to stop and eat like an American. Jason hated his marshmallows burnt, so, when he accidentally got them a bit too crispy, he gave them to Terrence, who vacuumed them up instantly. Barbara (oddly) put grape jelly on her s'mores **(3)** and encouraged Dick to do the same.

Dick reclined politely. ("EWW! THAT'S GROSS! NO WAY!")

Bruce only had one s'more, saying that being Batman required him to be fit. He almost cut off Blaine and Dick on their fifths, but, with the glare Barbara and Jason gave him (which he returned until he cracked under the terrifying thing that was 'Barbara'), allowed them to continue.

But, on their twelfths, Barbara ended up taking the chocolate and marshmallows away.

Finally, everyone climbed into their sleeping bags for the night, camping under the stars. Blaine and Dick were so small that they could share one, and Jason ended up lying under Terrence, who sprawled out over his 'brother' for warmth. Barbara curled her body around the 'twins' as they shivered.

Bruce was Batman.

He cuddled no one.

So, when they all woke up, everyone was rested, except for Bruce, who had been awake half the night from being cold.

They got home almost at midnight on Monday, greeted by Alfred. Dick and Blaine were both thrown over Bruce's shoulders as he held them by their ankles, letting their heads collide every other step. Needless to say, a Bruce without sleep is not a happy Bruce.

Jason and Barbara pulled in the luggage, along with help from Terrence.

Finally, after Terry, Dick, Blaine, and Alfred were in bed, Bruce dragged Barbara and Jason into his study.

Jason stretched, yawning loudly. "Bruce... It's almost 2AM... Can we _please _go to bed?"

There was a joyous twinkle in Bruce's eyes, different from any other look he had ever had. He sat down in his Slovakian leather wheelie chair, gesturing for Barbara and Jason to sit on the little couch in the middle of the room. The two sleepy teens did so.

There was a long, awkward silence, in which Bruce tried to catch his breath.

"Okay, you two," he said suddenly, snapping the silence like a twig. "I'm not good with the touchy-feely stuff, so I'm just gonna ask: You two have been here the longest, and I was wondering..." He took a deep breath. "Well, you see, I- I- I _love _you two (don't know why)" he smirked at the irked expressions "but I do. So... Anyways... Both of you are in high-school, and this is long overdue-"

"What happened to 'just asking' us?" Jason complained.

Bruce massaged his face, then blurted, "Would you two like to be adopted?"

There was an even longer, even more awkward silence that was like a neon fly in a room of black. **(3)**

Suddenly, Barbara leaped up and embraced Bruce so tightly that his face turned purple. "YES, YES, YES, OH THANK YOU SO MUCH, BRUCE! I LOVEYOU, I LOVE YOU, I LOVE YOU-"

"Just like that?" came Jason's grim voice.

Barbara pulled away from Bruce, frowning at her 'brother'. "Jason, don't be so-"

"So _what_?" he growled.

Bruce kissed Barbara's hand softly, telling her to go to bed. She did, shooting a glare at Jason as she left.

Bruce looked at Jason, confused. "Jason, what's-"

"You're not my dad."

It was a blow below the belt.

Bruce felt the air leave his chest, and Jason saw it. "I just mean, well- Bruce, I... I-"

Bruce held up a hand for silence. "I understand, Jason. Trust me, I do... I felt the same way when people offered to adopt me." He leaned forward, chin on his fists and elbows on his knees as he tried to see under Jason's crinkled forehead to his vibrant blue eyes.

"Jason... I'm not trying to replace your father..."

"I know," he sniffled, and Bruce realized, with a shock, that the boy was crying.

Without thinking, Bruce pulled Jason into his arms, allowing the sixteen-year-old to wet his foster-father's shirt with his tears. "B-B-Bruce... I- I just m-m-miss them s-so m-m-m-much..."

Bruce nodded burying his face into Jason's hair gently. "I know," came the muffled reply. "I know..."

"I- I mean... I h-h-hardly r-remember them, y-yeah, but it s-still h-h-hurts..."

Bruce nodded again, letting Jason cry.

The teen cried for almost a whole hour.

It shook Bruce as he realized that all of this rambling Jason did, telling him stories he _did _remember or had heard about his dad, telling him of the pain he felt, of the sadness and grief that he felt, had been pent-up for _years_.

"Jason," he said, drawing the boy's attention. He brought Jason's chin up so that navy eyes could meet cobalt. "Jason... I'm not going to replace your dad."

Jason nodded, stuttering, as he did when he was upset, "I- I k-k-know... I- I j-j-just... Do you t-t-think he'd m-mind m-m-m-much?"

Bruce smiled gently. "No... I think it'd be a lot like earning a new dad, instead of replacing one... Is that okay?"

Jason thought a moment, then smiled, burying his face into Bruce's now-wet shirt. "Yeah, yeah Dad... It's okay..."

**when I was little, i'd hang onto my big brother's back and he'd dive down, swim forward, and re-surface. We called this doing a 'Whale'. :)**

**'Dead Man' is an actual float, where you float face-down in the water.**

**Yes, I am that weird that I'd use an analogy like that. Deal with it.**

**AUCHK!  
>Guess what the next CH is...<strong>

**YES!**

**"Becoming Robin" is next!**

**YAY!**

**So...**

**review and I'll get that chappie out quicker...**

**:)**

**V**


	17. Becoming Robin I

**I own nothing 'cept the usual... blah, blah, blah...**

**AND NOW...**

**BECOMING ROBIN:**

**Part I**

**THE RAID**

"HYA!"

"HYA!"

The two 'twins' were roaring as they prepped their tiny torsos for the blows they were about to deliver. Blaine dashed forward like a madman, throwing out her fists and doing almost a torgete **(1)** as she kicked up. Dick back-flipped, then ran up the rock wall before spinning out horizontally and throwing his fist out and down, where Blaine had just been. The blonde girl was now doing a zig-zag dash towards Dick, screaming to prep her stomach as she threw out a punch. Unprepared, Dick was flung back into the rock wall. Blaine back-flipped away, smirking.

"Ready for more, bird-boy?"

He stood, snarling playfully. "Okay, B. Let's go..."

And with that, Dick darted forward. Just as Blaine was about to move out of the way, though, he slid in between her legs, pulling on her ankle, sending her face-down onto the training mat.

"Oomph!"

Dick stood triumphantly, shaking his fists in the air with his loud little cackle.

While the boy was thoroughly 'occupied', Blaine kicked out, sending him on his back.

"Ouch!"

She snickered.

Dick glared at her, but, after a few moments, the two were howling with laughter.

Wiping tears from their eyes, the two stood and went over to the side-bench. Bats croaked above them, filling the cave with noise. Bruce, in his suit with his cowl down, was at the super-computer. He had been on it ever since he woke up- about 4AM. Blaine and Dick had been sparring for the past half hour, and it was now almost 9AM.

Jason and Terrence came down the stairs, shortly followed by Barbara. Jason smirked as Blaine and Dick began to spar again.

"Blaine, feet out. Dick, hands up."

The two did as they were told, and the fighting intensified.

Jason waltzed over to his soon-to-be new dad, smirking. "Hey, _Dad,_" he teased.

"Hello, _Son_," the man teased right back.

"What're you doing?" Jason asked, yawning. They had school the next morning, and none of the kids were oh-so-thrilled about it.

Bruce pulled up his cowl and stood. "Emergency meeting with the League. I'll be back later."

"_How _later?" Barbara asked accusingly. She crossed her arms over her chest. "We haven't seen you ever since the vacation- and that was almost two months ago, Bruce!" Her voice got quiet as Terrence looked over. "Bruce..." she whispered, "Dick and Blaine have been asking for you... Dick's nightmares are getting even worse, and Blaine's not been eating well... They miss you, Bruce. _I _miss you... _We _miss you." She gestured to Jason and Terrence.

Batman was stoic, but faltered under Barbara's hurt gaze. She looked at her shoes, red hair falling into her face. She had recently got it cut, and it was now in a bob that just barely nipped at her shoulders.

Batman sighed heavily. "Tomorrow, after school, I'll pick you all up, and we'll go out for pizza. How's that sound?"

Barbara looked up, smirking sadly. "It's gonna take a lot more than pizza, Bruce- but it's a start."

Batman nodded, trying to hide his relieved smile. Jason nodded, shoving his hands into his pockets and gesturing over his shoulder. "I'ma gonna go work with Terrence and the twins."

Barbara turned and followed. "See 'ya later, Bruce."

He grunted in reply just before bright blue lights beamed him up to the Watchtower.

….

….

Superman stood at the front of the Bridge, trying to get everyone quiet. Batman was shocked- but didn't show it- at how _all _of the members were there. All sixteen of them- **(2) **Himself, Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Martian Manhunter, the two Green Lanterns, Hawkgirl and Hawkman, Captains Atom and Marvel, Green Arrow, Black Canary, Aquaman, Red Tornado, and Zatara. **(3)**

Superman finally got everyone calm, and Martian Manhunter turned on the screen. Superman turned to it and began his droning monologue.

"As we have been speaking about, in rumors and meetings, Lex Luthor is at large, and he seems to have some... worrying help."

An image appeared on the screen. It was an Asian man with beady, sharp black eyes, and a long, gray mustache that tied closed below his chin. He wore long, red and gold robes, and his scowl was sharper than his eyes.

"Ras a Ghul," **(4) **Batman said loudly, causing all eyes to turn to him.

Superman cleared his throat, gaining the attention once more. "Yes, Batman. Ras is the main man in the League of Shadows-"

This caused chaos.

People began to yell and shout, their faces turning red. Powers began to activate, and water, fireworks, and sharp winds whirled around the room. Black Canary growled and stood up at the podium.

"**SILENCE**!"

Her scream carried throughout the Watchtower, making everyone's eardrums bust open. She turned, smiling, and nodded to Superman, who had a pinkie in his eyes as he winced. "Yes..." he said a bit too loudly, "Thank you, Dinah."

Shaking his head, he turned back to the screens. "We need to deploy several groups to help take down their headquarters before they act out-"

"Do we even _know _what they _want_?" Green Arrow pointed out.

Superman nodded gravely, and another image appeared. Batman's eyes widened just a bit as he saw the glowing, purple rock.

"This rock is the last source of purple Kryptonite in the whole universe," Superman began. "It can take away the superpowers of any and all meta-humans. There has been much word and we have many resources that say that Luthor has been asking around about it. And, if Luthor has it, we all know what he's going to use it for."

Batman and Green Arrow exchanged glances before both sharing an eye-smirk. **(5)**

"Alright," Flash called out. "How're we planning our attack?"

Superman nodded and brought up an image of the headquarters. "We will need three different groups, one to create chaos- and Flash, of course, will lead that group-"

"I resent that!"

"- and two others to actually break-into the building. We have a lay-out of the place, which will be put into wrist-scanners that all group leaders shall receive." Superman paused, turning to face the crowd. "Of course, not all of us can go- that would leave the Watchtower _and _the whole world vulnerable. Our groups will be divided as such-

"Group 'A', the distraction group, will be led by Flash. Along with him will go Hal, Hawkman, Red Tornado, and Black Canary."

The five nodded.

"Good. Group 'B' will be attacking from the east side. Batman will lead this group-" there came a few groans, and the Dark Knight began to glare at the sky furiously "-followed by Green Arrow, Wonder Woman, and Hawkgirl. Group 'C' will attack from the west and will be led by John. Manhunter will follow, along with Zatara and myself.

"This leaves Aquaman, Captain Atom, and Captain Marvel as our reserve. And remember, there are _no _small parts," he said sharply, looking at the three. They were all the most peaceful and would understand.

Superman smiled gently. "Now, we need to get everyone in their groups and go over the battle plans..."

….

….

Flash was bored.

B-O-R-E-D.

Bored.

He turned to Canary in his seat, his feet propped up on the table. She was glaring at him. "Okay, Flash," Hal began. "Let's get to it- What's the plan?"

"We kick butt."

Everyone cocked an eyebrow at their 'leader' (except Red Tornado, who doesn't have eyebrows). Hawkman cleared his throat. "Um... Barry? Are you sure that-"

Flash groaned. "Look! We're the _distraction _team! That _means _we have to be _hectic_! And, if we have a plan to be hectic, we aren't actually being hectic, we're just _pretending _to be hectic. We need to _really _be hectic. All in favor?"

No one spoke. They all had headaches from the Flash-osiphy that they just heard.

….

….

"This is what we're doing, no 'its' 'and' 'buts' or 'ors'. Got it?"

Everyone stared at the Dark Knight, wishing they had got Flash or Green Lantern.

Batman nodded. "Good. Now, Arrow and I will go in first, taking out the guards _silently_-" he eyed Arrow, who was fixing his goatee in his arrow's reflection "- as we are the best at stealth."

No one objected.

It was true.

"Princess," he said to Wonder Woman, who looked up to the man. "You and Hawkgirl will come in after us, taking the lead and disabling other guards as we try to get to the mainframe, where I will hack and deactivate the alarms. At that time, our job will be done, and Team 'C' will head in. Any questions?"

….

….

John was a military leader.

No, seriously, he was in the army before he became a Lantern and joined the League.

He stood in front of his 'group' as he pointed out spots on the map. "Team 'B' will have already come in, attracting attention, and Team 'A' is the distraction we need, so we shouldn't run into any guards. But, if we do," he turned to Superman, "I will need you to take them out for us." Superman nodded in reply.

John turned back to the screen. "Good. We'll come across some security-"

"I can handle zat," Zatara said as he leaned forward in his chair. "Wiz magic, I mean."

John nodded. "That'll do. Now, after we breach the first door, we won't have a map, as the high-tech stuff is on our wing. I'll need J'onn to make a mental-map and help Superman lead the group towards where Luthor should be located. Our sources say that Ras will not be in the vicinity at the breach-"

"But what if ze is?" Zatara asked, a bit worriedly.

John closed his eyes, shaking his head. "Then God be with us all..."

….

….

Dick smiled as he finished up his long division. Blaine leered over his shoulder, scowling. "How do you _do _that? I'm having a _lot _of trouble in Math..." she added as an afterthought.

Dick smiled up at her. "Weeeell... If I help you with Math, can you help me in English? All of those apostrophes and alliterations and acronyms and- _blech_! I _hate _it!"

Blaine giggled from her spot across the small kitchen table. "Sure."

Terrence looked up. "Can _anyone _help me in History?"

….

….

After sharing their own plans (everyone looked down on Flash's, until he went all Flash-osiphy on them, then they shut up), Superman pulled aside Flash, Batman, and John. In a quiet voice, he said, "I was hoping we could go tonight-"

"To_night_?" Flash squeaked, his eyes popping out of his head.

Batman scowled (nothing new, really). "We need time to go over our plans-"

Superman interrupted. "Ras will be there tomorrow at dawn, and I really don't want to go in with him there."

John shivered and nodded in agreement. "Ras is a sadist..."

Batman said nothing. _If only they knew I'd _trained _with Ras..._

"So... tonight?" Flash asked shakily.

Superman nodded. "Tonight."

….

….

Jason's eyes flickered over to the clock that read: **12:47AM**.

_Bruce should be back by now... He'd never miss patrol..._

Jason turned around (yes, he was sitting at the computer in Bruce's fancy Slovakian leather chair) when he heard Alfred approach. "Master Jason," the old man said, "you have school tomorrow, may I inform you. You should be resting."

Jason turned back to the computer, his eyes flickering again over the clock, which now read: **12:48AM**.

The teen turned back to Alfred, sighing. "Okay, Alf. But- can you just wake me up a bit when Bruce gets home?"

Alfred smiled and nodded politely. "Of course, Master Jason."

Yawning, the sixteen-year-old went upstairs and to bed.

….

….

Flash was vibrating as he peered through the thick Amazon foliage. "There," hissed Black Canary as she peered over his shoulder.

The hero jumped. "Holy crap, D!" he shout-whispered at her. She rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah- And it's BC on the job."

"Fine, BC. Get back, you're in my bubble."

Black Canary suddenly pinned Flash against the tree, her lips going almost on top of his ear as she played her fingers over his chest. "Am I in your bubble now?"

"Married!" Flash squeaked and darted away, leaving a chuckling Canary behind him.

The building was huge a metal-plated. Outside stood at least two dozen guards.

"Ready?" Flash asked the others. They nodded reluctantly.

"So..." Hawkman drawled in a street-accent. "How're we gonna go about startin' this-"

"AURGH!" Flash screamed, flailing his arms in the air wildly as he ran around the guards.

"Like that, I guess," Hal groaned, trying to hide his smirk as he joined Flash. _Never give him sugar... _he made a mental note.

….

….

Batman's eyes squinted even further as he peered over the shrubbery. He saw a sudden flash of bright red and heard shrilly shrieking. "Okay, Flash's out." Hal and the others followed shortly. "And there goes the others..."

Wonder Woman peered over his shoulder, a bit too close for comfort.

Underneath the cowl, Bruce's neck turned pink as he remembered their Christmas kiss...

"Um, Diana, can you step about two feet away?"

"Bugging you?" she smirked.

Hawkgirl rolled her eyes in the background.

There came gun-fire, and Batman gestured for Arrow to follow. "Now!" he whispered.

The two sprinted through the black night, running over to the mechanic door. The guards had actually abandoned their post, leaving Batman to work. Bending over, he began to hack rapidly. In under thirty seconds, the door opened.

Two guards popped out, and Green Arrow quickly downed them with sucker-punches. The archer shook his hand, swearing. "Those helmets are _hard_..."

Batman rolled his eyes and held up two fingers to Wonder Woman and Hawkgirl, who both flew over.

"Get us in," Batman ordered.

….

….

They got to the control room, leaving a trail of unconscious bodies behind them. Hawkgirl smirked at her work, and Wonder Woman brushed her hands together for a job well done.

Batman approached the head computer, pulling out his wrist-top hacking media. He interjected the metal coil and watched as blue numbers flashed over the holographic screen.

He hid a smirk when he saw the furious little faces of a chibi-Batman appear. _Jason... _The faces went from an angry red to a happy green. Batman _almost _chuckled when the faces didn't smile, but simply glared instead of having a screaming-face.

"Arrow, get my back," he ordered as he began to hack through the next eight fire-walls.

Arrow nodded and turned to the door. Hawkgirl followed him, and they waited just outside the room.

Diana sauntered over to Batman, watching him work. "Bruce..." she whispered his name sultry-like. "Bruce, about our- um... about the Christmas 'party' or whatever you want to call it-"

"Diana," he said firmly, "do you _really _want to do this right now?"

Wonder Woman scowled at him, her hands clenching into fists. "Maybe I do!"

Batman cringed slightly as he got to the fifth fire-wall. "Diana, really, we're kind of in the middle of something-"

"And what if I want to talk about it now, hm? What if we decide to talk about it later- you'll be busy then, too, won't you?" She got suddenly quiet, then said, "Don't tell me you didn't feel _anything_-"

Batman suddenly growled.

Diana looked as if she was about to punch him through a wall. "What _now_, Br-"

"Not you," he grumbled, his gloved fingers running over the holographic screen. An alarm suddenly dropped down from the roof. Hawkgirl ran into the room, Arrow behind her.

"What's going _on_?" she shrieked. "Diana, what did you do-"

"Why do you _assume _it was _me_?"

"Well, Di, you are a bit of a clutz-"

"Shut it, bird-brain."

Arrow keeled down next to the crouching Batman. "What can we do?"

"Keep them busy."

The archer cocked an eyebrow. "Who-"

There came a sharp, Brazilian cry, and the three 'free' heroes stood, readying themselves.

"Oh," Arrow said bluntly. "Those 'thems'."

Before even letting 'them' attack, Hawkgirl let out her signature war-cry, using her mace to down two of the fifteen. Green Arrow began to shoot rapidly, backing up to be closer to Batman as the Dark Knight tried to break through the last three walls.

Wonder Woman pulled out her lasso, easily downing several others.

In moments, they were all down.

"I've almost got it-" Batman spoke, but was cut off as his wrist-computer exploded.

Suddenly, blue, pulsing electricity ran up and down the walls, domed ceiling, and onto the red-tinted floors. It shot up and into the heroes' bodies, earning several screams of anguished pain.

Green Arrow went unconscious first, followed by Hawkgirl. Wonder Woman, surprisingly, came next.

Batman felt black come over his eyes, but, as he looked up, he caught a glimpse of a very, terrifyingly familiar face.

With his last conscious breath, Batman hissed, "Ras..." before drifting into the cold, welcoming shadows...

….

….

John nodded to Zatara, who dearmed the alarm system. Superman then ripped open the door.

"Subtle," John joked and entered.

There were no guards, just as they had thought. Superman took the front as Manhunter walked in. He took a firm stance as his eyes began to glow fluorescent yellow. Slowly, he raised his green hands. "Left..."

Superman led.

Odd enough, they ran into no guards. Sure, they had expected only a _few _guards, but _none_?

"Something's not right..." John said unsurely.

"Knock on ze wood," Zatara said with a smirk.

"I agree with John," Superman said as he ripped open another door at Manhunter's request. They walked into what was _supposed _to be the main meeting room, but-

"No one's here," Superman voiced bluntly.

"Really?" John replied sarcastically.

"Really," came an old, crackly voice.

Everyone turned, weapons and powers at the ready. They face an old, tall figure- a man with a gray mustache and long, silk robes.

Martian Manhunter's eyes widened. "Ras a Ghul..."

Ras grinned maniacally, his yellow, chipped teeth looking very uninviting. "Yes, Martian... Now, must we do this the easy or the hard way?"

"Let's go with hard!" Superman grunted and flew at the martial artist.

Suddenly, Ras pulled out a large green rock and held it up. Superman faltered, rasping for air as he stepped back. "Kryp- kryp- tonite..." he muttered and fell to his knees.

John aimed his ring straight at Ras, who pulled a gun. Before anyone else could act, a yellow bullet fired into John's side. "AUGH!" he fell, knocked into black.

Manhunter's eyes glowed yellow as he tried to command Ras down, but suddenly-

"RAUGH!" the Martian screamed in agonizing pain as he fell face-down onto the floor.

Lex Luthor stood behind the Martian, holding a fire-shooter in hand. He smirked at Zatara, who had his wand withdrawn, aimed at Luthor. "What about Ras?" he asked jauntily.

Zatara's eyes flittered over to the other villain, who was smirking at the magician, an evil glint in his eyes. He had chained the kryptonite to Superman's neck, and the Kryptonian was out cold.

"Yes, Zatara," Ras snarled. "Go down easy, please. I am tired..."

Zatara's eyes flickered nervously from one man to the other.

There was a long, unsure pause.

Slowly, Zatara dropped his wand. "Forgive ze, God..." he said softly as Luthor cuffed him.

A hard elbow dug itself into the magician's solar plexus, and he fell, just like his comrades.

….

….

Black Canary's lungs were wearing out, and her vocal cords grew thin. She had been sonic-screeching for almost an hour, now, and was more tired than she ever had felt in her life.

Flash appeared suddenly, whisking the woman out of the way just as a grenade exploded where she had been. "Thanks," Canary gasped as she fought back a headache.

"No prob," the red-clad hero replied with a smirk.

Suddenly, Hal was seen being thrown into a large jungle tree that looked as if it had been pulled straight out of Tarzan. As the man stood on shaky knees, it could be seen that his costume was ripped in many places, and he had blood and bruises all over his poor, mangled body. Flash's eyes flickered over to Hawkman, and he saw the warrior fighting on the ground. His right wing had a gnarly tear in it, and it bled rapidly as feather fell from the appendage. Suddenly, Red Tornado's head appeared at Flash's feet.

Canary gasped, and the speedster snarled. "That... was... un... called... for..." he rasped slowly before heading in.

Taking a deep breath, Canary dived back into the fray.

With Red Tornado down, and Hal and Hawkman so massively injured, it was only a matter of time before the group fell.

They in in five matters-of-times.

….

….

Dick awoke at almost 5AM, yawning and stretching as his tiny feet squirmed under the blankets.

After finding he couldn't get back to sleep, the boy got up and out of bed before making his way downstairs.

Before he reached the kitchen, he heard nervous voices.

**Alfred: **"Master Jason, I insist, you cannot skip school for-

**Jason: **"Alfred! Bruce didn't come home last night _or _this morning. He said he'd be gone for a few hours, not a few days!"

**Barbara: **"Alf, we _have _to go after him! We're _heroes_! We can't just-"

**Alfred: **"Miss Barbara, I am no longer 'insisting'. I am _commanding_. You two are _not _skipping school to go after Master Bruce. He often does this-"

**Jason: **"Yeah, but I've got a bad feeling about this time, Alf! It's in the pit of my stomach... I just can't shake it!"

There was a long pause, then Alfred sighed.

**Alfred: **"Master Jason, _if_, after school, Master Bruce has not made an appearance or sent word, you may go up to the Watchtower. But _not _before or _during _school."

Jason could be heard growling.

**Alfred: **"It is that or nothing, Master Jason."

**Jason: **"Fine..."

**Barbara: **"I'm going, too!"

Dick suddenly popped up. "Me three!"

Everyone jumped at the boy's sudden appearance.

Jason eyed Barbara, as if begging her to say something. She shrugged, and Jason sighed heavily, turning back to the boy. "Well, Dick. We're gonna need all the help we can get. Go get Blaine and Terrence. We're having a meeting before school..."

**To Be Continued...**

**'Torgete' is a French word for a special ballet move.**

**Yes, there ARE sixteen members in the show.**

**No, I do not mean ZATANNA. Zatara is her father, and her mentor. Apparently, she is not in this reality in YJ.**

**I HATE how they mis-pronounce his name on the show...**


	18. Becoming Robin II

**YAAAAAAAY!**

**The long-awaited BECOMING ROBIN II!**

**I own nothing (except for Wraith, Blaine, Jason, BlackHawk, and Sparrow. :))**

**SO NOOOOOOOOOOOW...**

**read it.**

**before i sick my communists on you, foos.**

When Batman finally opened his eyes, he saw that he was in a very, _very _large room. It was almost as long as two football fields (professional, definitely) and just as wide as one. The walls were metal, probably about two feet thick, and came up to the top in a rectangular-ish dome. There were vents, the ones that look like tin foil, all around the ceiling, and several large metal pipes were littered around the room. The floor was more of a walk-way, no floor except for the tiles leading up to several different clear containers-

All of which held the Justice League, all of which were still unconscious.

Batman's eyes would have widened in shock- if Batman could be shocked.

He saw Superman directly across from him, in the middle of the wall of 'test tubes'. He had two thick metal plates over his wrists, hips, chest, and ankles. There was a very large, glowing, green rock beneath his feet.

All around, the Members that came on the raid were all placed, their own weaknesses all around them. Both Green Lanterns had yellow-tinted walls, and yellow rocks in their 'enclosures'. Black Canary's had (from what Batman could see) sound-proof glass that would throw her scream back at her. Red Tornado was in one test tube in pieces. Flash had some kind of glue on top of his metal plates, and all along his back, sticking him to the wall. Hawkman and Hawkgirl had their wings tied together. _All _of the League members were apprehended-

No.

Wait.

Three hadn't been taken.

So there was still hope!

Two large metal, electronic doors slid open, and in walked Lex Luthor and several black and navy, armor-clad guards. Behind them came-

"Crap..."

….

….

**Eight hours earlier**...

It was nearing 2AM, the point at which a check-in call would come to the Watchtower.

None came.

Aquaman stood, his face clearly worried, and turned to Captain Marvel and Captain Atom. Both looked just as worried as Corin felt.

"They haven't called in..." Marvel spoke as he shifted from foot to foot.

Atom shrugged nervously. "Maybe they're in the middle of a fight?" he offered.

Corin turned back to the communicator panel and nodded. "We shall give them half an hour."

2:30...

2:31-

"We are leaving," Aquaman said sharply, prepping up the teleporter and typing in the coordinates.

….

….

The three heroes stalked through the jungle, their senses heightened to even hiss and creak and snap of the blackened jungle around them.

Atom's glowing chest offered foot-light for the men as they creeped towards the large building. Aquaman frowned when they reached the clearing. There were no guards outside the headquarters.

"Something isn't right..." Captain Marvel muttered.

Suddenly, a shot rang out.

Metal pierced Captain Marvel's arm, and the man was thrown back into the bushes. Corin raised his arms to form a water-shield, but just as he was pulling water up out of the damp soil, a tranquilizer dart hit his neck.

Everything went black...

….

….

**Present Time**...

Batman watched as two guards dragged the unconscious Aquaman to his own tube. After situating him, they put Marvel up, then Atom, and stood back to admire their 'handy-work'.

Luthor turned and looked at all of the heroes. When his eyes lay on Batman, he smirked. "I knew you'd be the first up."

Batman snarled deeply in his throat as the sadist approached. "What do you want, Luthor?"

The man shrugged. "Money, women, world-domination. What else?"

Batman's eyes narrowed as he shot his fiercest Bat-glare possible at Luthor. "So why kidnap us?"

Luthor snorted, smiling evilly. "You all were in my way. Oh, don't worry, once I'm done, I'll let you all go... But I might have to dispose of a few first."

His white-teethed grin grew larger as he looked out at all of the heroes. "Just try to escape, Batman!"

_No need to tell me_, the man thought.

Just then, though, Batman realized that he didn't have his boots, cape, belt, or gloves. He growled deeply as Luthor turned back around. "Why not take the mask, too?"

Luthor shrugged. "I'm not interested in who you are- as long as you're out of my way, I have no need to know!"

Just then, Ras decided to show up. Luthor grinned broadly, inclining his head in a slight bow and said, "Master..."

Ras just nodded, then turned and smirked at Batman. "Batman... It has been long."

"Not long enough, Ras..." Batman snapped back.

The bearded man nodded, then turned to Luthor. "Please, if I could have a moment?"

Luthor shrugged. "Take all the time you need." And he and the guards left.

Ras's head snapped over so that his beady black eyes peered straight at Batman. "Bruce... this persona suits you."

Batman snorted. "'Ya think, Ras?"

The man shrugged. "You were my best pupil..."

"Where did I go wrong?" Batman retorted sarcastically.

Ras's eyes narrowed. "I know one place where you went wrong, Bruce- taking in those orphan brats... When they try to rescue you, I'll be ready..."

This time, as Ras left, Batman's eyes did widen. _Oh, God... Jason, don't come... Jason, don't bring them..._

….

….

School couldn't go fast enough for Boy Wonder.

He sat in his seat, almost vibrating with how excited- for a lack of better terms- he was.

He was excited about being able to be a superhero, but if Bruce was in trouble...

The bell rang, and Dick dashed out the classroom door. He ran through the muddy schoolyard (the snow was finally melting) and over to the tree where Alfred always picked him up.

To his surprise, it was not Alfred that was there, nor was the Bentley there. But Jason, Barbara, Terrence, and Blaine were all waiting for him in a bright red convertible. Dick grinned and jumped, both feet up, over the door. Jason nodded, not grinning like how he usually did, and began to speed towards the Manor.

"First things first!" He tried to speak loudly over the rushing wind. "We find Bruce. We already tried calling the others-"

"-The other Leaguers," Barbara interjected.

Jason shot her a look and continued. "-So I'm going to hack the zeta beams and get us up to the Watchtower. If we can't find him or anyone else there, we can start worrying."

"WE'RE ALREADY WORRYING!" Terrence shouted.

Jason ignored him.

Blaine squeaked, "Wait! Robin and I need costumes!"

Barbara turned in the side-seat to face the back. Her hair flew into her face as she shouted, "We can worry about that later! You can use your training equipment."

Dick pouted. "But I want a cape!"

….

….

Jason had actually managed to find enough fabric for Alfred to quickly snip-snap up two black capes for the 'twins' to go with their black training suits.

Now, Dick looked at himself in the mirror.

He wore the black, one-pieced spandex underneath a black, bullet-proof vest. It ran from his wrists to his ankles, covering him up all the way to his neck. He wore a small gray utility belt around his hips, and he had on thick gray gloves.

"_They're equipped with all sorts of tracking devices and tools," _Terrence had explained while he fitted Blaine and Dick out for belts and gloves. After showing them how to use the gloves (they had already trained with the belts- Dick was a _natural _with his bow-staff, and Blaine could hold her own with those nun-chucks), Terrence had run off to get suited up.

Dick placed the domino mask on his face, smiling at how cold the sealant on the corners and edges felt. Alfred had cut up a cape- white on the inside, black on the outside- for him, and an identical one for Blaine.

"Ready?" came the girl's voice.

Dick turned and smiled. Blaine wore the same he did- black jumpsuit, gray belt and gloves, white and black cape, and domino mask. But she also wore tall, black boots that stopped short of her knees.

"Almost," Dick grunted, pulling on his own boots.

"Jason's got the teleporter almost ready," Blaine spoke as Dick plopped down to clip up the boots. "He hacked the super-computer and got the password, but he's now trying to get past the voice-activated fire walls and stuff."

Dick nodded and took the hand Blaine offered.

The two regarded each other, then Blaine giggled. "You can rock that cape, _Robin_."

He giggled right back. "And you look sweet in those boots, _Sparrow_."

Yeah, their code-names were their nicknames.

Creative.

Barbara called out to the kids, and they darted over, Dick doing several back-flips and jumps while Blaine plowed past obstacles in her way.

Barbara crouched down to face the two twiggy kids. She quadruple-checked their vests, boots, gloves, and belts, then began to fiddle with their capes.

"Barbara!" Dick whined as she unclasped and re-clipped his boots. "We're _fine_-"

"Just because Jason thinks bringing you guys is a good idea, doesn't mean I have to agree," Barbara snapped.

Dick winced. Barbara only snapped when she was a) really, _really _angry, or b) really, _really _scared.

Probably both.

Blaine put a hand on Barbara's shoulder. "Barb, we're gonna be fine. Don't worry."

Alfred suddenly appeared- _again_. "I do not quite agree with Master Jason, either-"

"Alfred!" the two kids groaned in unison.

"We will be _fiiiiine_," Dick drawled.

Alfred scowled and nodded. "Of course, Master Dick." And he began to sixtuple(?)-check their equipment.

"_ALFRED!_"

Terrence- no, _Wraith_, now that he had his mask on- popped out of the shadows. "BlackHawk's got the 'port ready." He scrutinized the twins carefully. "Are you two _sure _that-"

"YES!"

Wraith jumped a bit, then calmed himself. "Right. C'mon."

Barbara became Batgirl when she pulled up her cowl. Dick- scratch that, _Robin_ followed her, Bl- _Sparrow_'s hand in his. "Ready, B- Sparrow?"

She chuckled nervously. "Yeah, D- Robin."

BlackHawk cocked an eyebrow at the two. "You'd best not screw-up like that on the mission."

"We won't!" Robin said quickly. Jason was the _only one _who thought that this would be a 'good learning experience' for the two. But, honestly, he just wanted to keep them in his sights, as if they too would be snatched away when his back was turned.

Like how he had allowed Bruce to be snatched away when he had his wall down.

See, people _thought _Jason was shy...

He wasn't.

He was just trying to protect himself.

"Let's go," the teen sighed heavily as he chauffeured the younger children onto the pad. Batgirl came on after him, and Wraith after her. It was a tight fit, but they could make it work.

Alfred, his eyebrows making a rather large canyon, nodded. "Are you sure-"

BlackHawk sent Alfred a look, and the butler sighed, pressing a large red button (oooh... ahhh...) on the machine. "Be careful," he managed to shout out before the children disappeared into thin air.

….

….

They fizzed into reality moments later-

And their jaws dropped as their eyes grew to watermelons.

They were in a half-clear-glass dome, where the Earth could be seen perfectly. The floor seemed to glow with the lights that appeared on the metallic ceiling, that stretched up hundreds of feet. Metal tiles were bolted into place on the floor. The zeta pad that the five children stood on glowed iridescent blue, sending a glow over their faces. In front of them was seven steps down to the floor.

They walked unsurely, and BlackHawk pulled Blaine into his side while he clasped Dick's hand tightly. His masked eyes flit over to another set of stairs that led up to a put-out piece of metal walkway, almost fifty feet above them. "C'mon," the teen ordered as he walked up the steps.

They were greeted by a holographic super-computer. The screens beeped and whistled, flickering slightly in their aquamarine hues. At least twelve screens above showed rapidly changing pictures of things such as wild-fires, hurricanes, earthquakes, and one even showed a prison-breakout.

Batgirl scowled. "Where is everyone? They're needed-"

"We're needed," Wraith input. Everyone looked at him oddly as he pointed to the console. A red light was beeping next to white text that said, **EMERGENCY**, in bold print.

"Crap..." BlackHawk muttered as he hefted the two youngers onto the console to sit. Quickly, he began to fiddle with the large machines.

"What're you doing?" Robin inquired curiously.

"I..." I began as he typed, "am trying to figure out where everyone is..."

Wraith turned around, taking in the rest of the amazing structure. "Should Batgirl and I look around? Maybe someone's here and they just can't hear us."

BlackHawk nodded, not tearing his eyes from the screen. "Yeah- take Sparrow with you. Robin, stay here. I want to teach you how to extract info from a computer like this."

Robin beamed and gave Sparrow a quick hug before she darted off with Batgirl and Wraith.

The black-haired child turned and watched as numbers rapidly ran over the screen. "Woah... What do all of those mean?"

BlackHawk shrugged. "This is just info that I'm sifting through. I really don't need it- I'm just surfing for the data I _do _need. Kind of like Google."

Robin nodded as he watched his 'brother's' fingers run across the panels and keyboards. "Now, look."

All Robin saw was shapes and symbols. "Um... What am I looking at?"

BlackHawk smirked slyly. "Oh, yeah... This's gonna be fun..."

….

….

Sparrow darted all around the halls, peering in every door that was even minutely cracked open. Wraith had separated from his foster-sisters to go down the split hall to the left, while the girls had taken the right.

Batgirl watched, entertained, as Sparrow practiced kicks and punches- an even a few flips. The blonde-haired girl ran up a wall, doing a flip and landing on both feet, facing the same wall. She beamed at Batgirl. "Robin taught me that."

Batgirl smiled gently and turned to a closed door. To her surprise, it read **'Batman'**. Brown eyes flickered over the hand-scanner and eye-piece. _Maybe... _she thought and took off her glove, pressing her hand against the scanner. She used her other hand to pull her cowl up enough so that the red lights could scan her eye.

To her giddy surprise, there came a female voice that said, _"Access granted."_

Turning to find Sparrow directly behind her, Batgirl nodded and entered the room.

The walls were sheer white, the flooring black wood. There was no paraphernalia on the walls, and no papers spread out on the barren oak desk in the corner. The bed was made perfectly, and the pillows were stainless crème. "What're we doing in here?" Sparrow voiced.

But Batgirl didn't answer. _Spying, betraying Bruce's trust, and trying to find info on whether or not he is still alive._

She began to rifle through the drawers, but her fingers froze as she came to a certain picture.

It was a picture she had drawn for 'Batman' when she was five.

Her father, Commissioner Gordon, had given it to him while he was out on the job.

_And he still has it?_

It was a picture of Batman, smiling, holding the hand of a little girl- Barbara. Commissioner Gordon held her other hand, smiling behind his big gray mustache.

Batgirl's eyes began to water, so she slammed the drawer shut. Sparrow jumped and fell back onto the bed. "Everything okay, Bats?"

Batgirl nodded, not saying anything- this time because she felt her vocal cords would crack if she did.

Rustling through the other drawers proved fruitless. There was only records and files of old, _finished _cases. Close and shut. Turning, Batgirl didn't see Sparrow in the room. "Sparrow?" she asked cautiously, poking her head out the door. The little girl wasn't there.

"Sparrow?" Batgirl asked again, darting down the hall. But the blondie was nowhere in sight.

"Sparrow!"

"Ouch!"

Batgirl had turned a corner and run straight into Blaine, who was peering at a metal door. Batgirl felt her heart drop with relief. "Oh, thank God. Do _not _run away from me again, you hear me?" She tried to be stern, but it was hard with that little girl's smile.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Sure. Whatever- but, hey, look at this!"

A gold plaque on the door read: **Computer Lab**.

Batgirl grinned. "Good job, Sparrow."

Since her hand had opened the other door, Batgirl supposed it would open this door.

**Beep! Beep! **_"Access denied." _**Beep! Beep!**

Scowling, the teen girl lifted her wrist-comm to her lips. "Hey, Hawk, got anything?"

After a few staticy moments, BlackHawk's voice came on. _"Yeah. Apparently, the whole League left for the same coordinates late last night. Well, three of them left early this morning, technically."_

Batgirl's eyes widened behind her cowl. "_All _of them?"

"All _of them."_

Trying to process the information, Batgirl opened the line to Wraith, too. "Okay, Hawk, Wraith, get to the left hall, wing C6-" she read from the sign posted on the wall- "Sparrow's found a Computer Lab. We might be able to get some data from here- but the door needs to be hacked."

"_'K, Bats," _Wraith voiced. _"I'm on my way."_

"_Me, too. Hawk out."_

….

….

BlackHawk and Wraith were on two different computers, while Batgirl was trying to keep her cool. She had started to freak out a bit- after all, if someone had captured the _whole _League, then what chance did five kids stand?

"Hey!" Robin's voice squeaked, causing all eyes to look at him and Sparrow. The girl sat on the counter next to where the boy was leering at a computer screen. "Look here! I managed to hack into Batman's files-"

"You _what_?" BlackHawk gawked.

Robin eyed him. "I hacked into Batman's files."

"HOW?"

Robin shrugged. "You just showed me how to hack-"

"Yeah!" BlackHawk stammered. "But- but that was just- but- how did you get it so quickly?"

The boy shrugged. "I dunno."

Shaking his head, the teen crossed over, crouching to be face-to-face with the screen and with Robin. "What'd you get?"

Masked eyes roamed the lighted blips, and Robin started. "It seems that some guy names Lex Luthor's been going after some scientists and stuff." Robin pulled up a screen that showed several different views- even an X-ray view- of a glowing, purple rock. BlackHawk scowled.

"I know who Lex Luthor is- but what is _that_?"

Robin squinted and tried to sound out the word. "Kry- Krypto- Krip?- Krypton- ni-"

"Kryptonite!" Batgirl and BlackHawk exclaimed in unison.

The other three cocked their eyebrows as their jaws opened and shut. "Wha?" Wraith finally asked.

"Kryptonite," Batgirl explained, hands out, palm-up. "It's the thing that takes away Superman's powers. It... _hurts _him-"

"Badly," BlackHawk snorted.

Batgirl rolled her eyes at him as the teen pulled Robin up out of the chair and onto his lap. Gloved fingers ran across the keypad and pulled up more information about the Kryptonite. "Apparently, _this _certain Kryptonite can take away the powers of _any _meta-human, not just Kryptonians."

"Kryptonians?" Sparrow asked as she frowned.

"People from Krypton," Batgirl began to explain again, "the planet that Superman is from."

Robin, Wraith, and Sparrow nodded slowly.

BlackHawk began to print off several papers, including papers on the purple Kryptonite. "I'll see if I can't get some info on that place that the League went to," he spoke. "Robin- can you read me the lat and long?"

The boy used his own little wrist-top computer to pull up the coordinates. "Looks like... 45-West-Long, and... 5-South-Lat!" **(1)**

BlackHawk nodded and pulled up the map. "It's just open land in Brazil."

Batgirl shrugged. "Hey- it's where _they _went, right?"

BlackHawk began sifting through evidence.

Suddenly, a building popped up. He gasped. "No... _way_. This looks like a headquarters for Lex Luthor! And-" A picture of an old man with a gray beard popped up. Batgirl gasped and glared at BlackHawk, who glared right back.

"No."

"Yes."

"_No_," she affirmed.

"_Yes_!"

"We are _not _taking Rob and Spar if _he _is gonna be there-"

"Who is _he_?" Wraith asked, clearly annoyed at how little he knew.

After taking in a deep breath, BlackHawk said, "Ras A Ghul... He works with the League of Shadows."

Batgirl spoke suddenly, "We need help."

"Who?" Wraith objected, hands out. "There are _no more heroes _out there!"

Sparrow and Robin shared a look, then the older spoke, "What about heroes-in-training?"

….

….

The red-haired, green-eyed woman sauntered into the room, holding a large plate of-

"COOKIES!" shouted Wally.

The junior-speedster jetted up to his aunt, his fluffy red hair in an array, freckles sticking out pointedly over his nose, under green eyes. "I love you, Aunt Iris!"

The woman didn't object as Wally scarfed down the cookies. She simply sat on the couch next to him, watching as the mindless cartoon show blared on. Barry was _never _gone for this long- and, if he had to be, he would have _called_ at least.

She had considered calling John or Bruce, but they were probably out, too. After calling Mary and Rudolph, which was fruitless, Iris was getting even more worried.

Wally had just gotten his powers a few weeks before, but he was learning to hone them well. For the time-being, he was staying with his aunt and uncle so that Barry could 'teach' him. Not that the two ever _learned _anything of _use_.

Iris baked when she was nervous.

So, it was a good thing Wally was there.

"More?" the boy's voice piped up.

Iris looked down and _almost _laughed at the ten-year-old who held up an empty, chocolate-smeared yellow plate. He had chocolate and crumbs on his cheeks and lips. His green eyes were wide with delight.

"No more, Wally."

He frowned, looking put-out.

"But you can have some carrots."

The boy made a face, and Iris managed a small giggle. "Go wash up. I'll have dinner ready soon."

The boy nodded and was gone in a flash. Iris shouted half-heartedly after him, "Wallace West! You know the rules- no super-speeding in the house!"

As Iris brought the dishes into the kitchen, the doorbell to their apartment rang. Her heart lifted as she ran over, soap suds on her apron and hands, and quickly undid the lock. "Bar-"

Instead of her husband, five children looked at her. They were all wearing heavy hoodies and jeans. There were two girls- one blonde and very short, maybe Wally's age, and the other was a red-head, probably fourteen or so. And there were three boys- one with black hair, younger than Wally, another- a Black boy- a bit older than the blonde girl, and the last- obviously the oldest, maybe sixteen- with brown, spiky bangs.

"Mrs. Allen?" he asked nervously.

Iris nodded slowly. "Yes..."

The red-headed girl spoke up, "We're here about your husband..."

Quickly looking down the hall, Iris pulled them into the room just as Wally's voice could be heard. "Hey! Aunt Iris, who's at the door-"

He stopped when he came into the room. There was a group of kids there, all dressed like street kids. Wally frowned, eyebrows furrowing. "Aunt Iris, who's this?"

The red-haired girl stepped forward, smiling, her hand out. "My name is Barbara. Barbara Gordon-Wayne."

Iris's eyes grew at the name 'Wayne'. "Like- Bruce Wayne?"

The oldest boy nodded. "I'm Jason Holmes-Wayne, this's Terrence Prince-Wayne, Blaine McGuyver-Wayne, and Dick Grayson-Wayne. We're Bruce's foster-kids-"

"And his _sidekicks_," Terrence added as an after-thought.

Iris nodded slowly. "Batman..."

Wally's eyes grew wide. "BATMAN? Like- oh! The Justice League!" He rounded on his aunt. "Is the Justice League the reason Uncle Barry's missing?"

Dick jumped forward. "We haven't seen Bruce since late last night, and we haven't been able to call him or anything. And his tracker's gone out."

Iris paled, a hand drawing up to her lips. "Oh, my-"

"We haven't been able to contact any of the League," Jason began as he sat the woman down. He sat on the edge of the couch next to her and began to rifle through his pockets, pulling out some papers. "Here- we think that..." He took in a deep breath. "We think that the League has been abducted- the _whole _League."

Iris tried to take in the information as she scanned the papers with her eyes. There was an Asian man, a purple rock, and- "Lex Luthor?" she gasped. "But- he's on the news all the time! Lex Corp, I mean- and- uh..." She let out an uneasy breath, trying to process. "So... the _whole_ League has just... vanished?"

Jason shook his head, pulling one paper to the front of the pile on Iris's lap. "Not quite, Mrs. Allen-"

"Just call me Iris," she said suddenly.

"Okay, Mrs. Iris-"

She rolled her eyes. _Kids may be too polite... Wow- never thought I'd say that._

"-we believe that they all went on a mission and got... abducted. Here- somewhere in Brazil. It's a high-tox facility that we _believe _is working with the League of Shadows-"

"The arch-enemies of the Justice League," Barbara explained kindly.

Jason ignored her. "And we're going to try and break them out."

"But we need help," Dick put forward.

Iris felt her heart drop into her stomach as she looked over at Wally, who was, as well, trying to process everything. "No," she voiced instantly. "I am _not _going to put my nephew in that kind of danger-"

"Aunt Iris!" the boy exclaimed, jumping forward. "I _need _to help- you heard them! They don't stand a _chance _without me!"

Jason cocked an eyebrow, but said nothing.

Iris shook her head.

"But, Aunt Iris-"

"Wally-"

"Please..." Dick voiced, putting on his best sad face, which wasn't hard. He was terrified. "Please, Mrs. Iris... We need all the help we can get!"

Iris bit her lower lip, going from Jason to the papers to Wally to Dick, back and back again. Finally, she sighed heavily. "Stay. In. Touch."

Wally high-fived Dick, grinning. He like this kid.

The ginger turned his grin onto Blaine, who blushed furiously, disappearing behind Terrence, who scowled at Wally. The boy pulled back when he saw the protective look.

"You'll need a costume-" Jason began, but Iris cut him off.

"You can use Barry's old one!" She blushed at the confused looks, then said, "You know Jay Garrick, Wally? He was the first Flash, and your Uncle Barry was 'Kid Flash', Jay's sidekick. You can use his costume."

….

….

The costume was bright, _bright _yellow-topped with red bottoms, a white lightning-bolt-'belt', so to speak, along the waist. A white lightning bolt was on the chest, and a hood came over Wally's face, a red lightning bolt on either side of his head for 'ears', and had a white-tinted visor that covered Wally's bright red eyes. He grinned as Iris explained, "Barry told me that the suit has compartments in the wrists for snacks, to keep your metabolism levels high, and that it doesn't get too hot like your other clothes when you run. The shoes don't wear out, either."

Wally looked down at the shiny white boots, grinning. "Cool!"

Dick grinned as Wally pulled jeans and a jacket over his costume, placing his visor in his pocket. "That _is _pretty cool," the younger boy said. "Me and Blaine are just wearing our training suits..."

Wally shrugged. "Hey- I don't have _any _training suit. That's pretty cool yourself."

Dick grinned.

He might start to like this Wally kid.

Iris put a candy bar in Wally's yellow gloves (she called the compartments 'cupboards') and patted his shoulder, kissing his cheeks and forehead. "Be safe, Wally. Okay? Your uncle and parents would _kill me _if anything happened to you..."

Wally rolled his eyes. "I'll be _fine_, Aunt Iris!"

And, kissing her on the cheek, he ran out the door with the others.

Iris watched him go, wondering what the heck she had just done.

….

….

Roy was getting nervous. He sat in the penthouse apartment, watching (but not really) the basketball game between the Star City-High Bulldogs and the Gotham-Institute Knights. Stravinsky made a goal, but the orange-haired teen didn't notice.

Running his fingers through his bangs, the fourteen-year-old's blue eyes flickered from the door to the cell phone and earwig on his right, on the couch-side table. Dinah had called, very abruptly, to say that she and Oliver had a mission and that the man wouldn't be home that night- not that it bugged Roy. He could stay up late and eat ice-cream! But, sadly, Dinah had sent up Fred, a worker at the penthouse who had taken a liking to Roy, to send the boy off to bed. He had walked to school the next day- five miles, not that it bugged the kid (he _was _a super-hero in training- that kind of exercise shouldn't bug him... right?)- and gone through the grueling process of schoolwork. He took the bus home (and got teased for being a billionaire's foster-kid the whole way), expecting for Oliver to be there.

But he wasn't.

Roy tried and tried and _tried _to contact Oliver and Dinah, and even Clark and Barry and Bruce after that! But, no one answered their comm-units. Of course, Roy only had one for emergencies.

He even tried contacting the Leaguers that he _didn't _know.

But no one answered.

After doing his homework and cooling himself down at the penthouse's built-in archery range (Oliver had always told him to cool down his extreme anger-issues with his archery), Roy sat down to watch TV.

It was nearing 7PM, and there was no word.

From _anyone_.

The doorbell suddenly rang, making Roy jump a bit. His face lit up. _Oliver? _Then, though, it fell. _No... Oliver wouldn't ring or knock... Neither would Dinah..._

He dragged out his bow, readying an arrow, and gently cracked the door just enough with the chain lock so that he could see who was in the hall.

A group of kids?

Roy barked, "Who are y-"

"We're here to talk," said the obvious oldest. His voice lowered, and he said, "League business."

Roy let them in.

….

….

Forty minutes later, Roy had managed to shrink one of Oliver's tunics just enough in the wash so that it fit him nicely. He wore the green fabric over khakis, wearing combat boots that he had for training over them. Barbara- Batgirl- had taken an extra mask of Oliver's and cut it up so that it fit Roy's face, and the teen even decided to sport one of Oliver's green, Robin Hood-themed hats. He liked it.

Barbara blushed slightly as Roy took off his shirt to change into the tunic. "S-Sorry," she muttered, turning around. Roy blushed, too.

"It's okay... Nothing's really... showing."

Both flushed even brighter after this comment.

Roy had Barbara help him strap on his quiver (not that he _needed _help, not that either cared) and then the teen filled it with different types of arrows. Wally, Dick, and Blaine watched with intense interest as Roy counted and named off the arrows.

"Five bomb-arrows... Five net-arrows... Fifteen blunt arrows... Ten sharpened arrows... Ten knock-out gas arrows..." The teen grinned when he came to a certain electric blue arrow. "Atomic, electronic atom arrow."

Dick drooled over that one.

"Ready?" Jason asked sharply as Roy pulled civvies on over his suit. Roy scowled at the older teen.

"Yeah. You?"

Jason's eyes narrowed. "Ready."

….

….

They got themselves back to the Manor, and Alfred fed each and every one of them fully.

They went over the charts (to the Twins', and Wally's _delight_... Not...) and formulated a plan.

"Okay..." Jason started. "So, we'll break into two groups- me, Roy-"

"Wait!" Blaine shouted. Everyone looked at her as she eyed Roy. "You need a code-name."

Roy smirked. "Me and Ollie've been talkin' about that. I'm a quick shot, so he likes Speedy."

"Speedy?" Jason snorted.

Barbara slapped his arm. "I _like _Speedy." She smiled gently at Roy, who nodded graciously.

"Whatever," Jason growled. He was getting more and more agitated as the hours without the League ran on. "So me, _Speedy_, Robin, and Sparrow- as those two fight best together- will go in the North entrance. Batgirl, Kid Flash, and Wraith will take the South. Robin and Sparrow will climb in the vent system and scope out the place for us, while Wraith should do the same for you-" he nodded to Barbara, who nodded back. "'K... We meet up... Here." His finger landed on a certain room on the second floor. "This is an unmarked room, and, if I'm right, that'll be where they have the League."

Roy scowled. "And if you're _wrong_?"

Jason didn't answer.

Terrence leaned forward. "Okay, let's get one thing straight- _no _killing."

Everyone just eyed him.

The boy sat back, eyes wide. "_Whaaaaat_?"

**OOOH!**

**SpeedyxBatgirl? WADDAYA THINKS? hate it? love it?**

**(1) I am not using _real _coordinates here, but this _is _where Brazil is located, if that helps at all... :)**

**SO**

**review!**

**V**


	19. Becoming Robin III

**I own nothing... blah, blah, blah... except the usual.**

**Okay, I _thought _this would only be three chapters, but it's gonna be four...**

**YAY!**

**Now read. Communists.**

For the _hours _that they had been in 'holding', the League hadn't been fed or given any water. While it didn't actually effect most of them, it did some- immensely. Aquaman was extremely drowsy and obviously dehydrated, and Flash's face was minorly contorted in pain from the aching pains his stomach was emitting. Batman watched with an eagle-eye as the two guards that stood at the door chatted mindlessly. He strained to hear, but they were almost a hundred feet away. That and his glass enclosure added up, the Bat could only hear muttering.

Manhunter raised weary eyes to look at Batman (the two were right next to each other). He had burns all over his arms and chest, and two 'torches' rested near his head. He furrowed his eye-bones (really, _no _eyebrows) at Batman, who looked away.

_They expect me to have a plan..._

J'onn dishearteningly hung his head.

The metal doors swiftly opened, and Batman looked up curiously. Sadly, the guards were only changing out positions.

He went back tot hanging his head.

_Jason, please, please... Don't come... Don't bring them... Barbara, Terrence... Don't. Come..._

Black Canary lifted her head suddenly, her blonde curls falling into her face. Batman sighed, almost growled, in his throat and spoke (oddly, the holding tanks seemed to have some sort of microphones so that the heroes could hear each other- but Lex and Ras could probably hear, too), "Canary, don't even tr-"

She opened her mouth and _shrieked_.

All of the heroes cried out in pain as the super-sonic boom hit their ears.

Canary stopped instantly, her mouth open in an extremely pained pant. She rocked her head back and forth, swearing and moaning. Green Arrow, who was next to her (she was across from Batman), looked over worriedly. His eyes widened behind his mask, and his breath caught in his throat, when he saw blood running down her neck from her ears.

"Canary," he croaked nervously, "can you hear me?"

She cried out- humanly, thank God- in pain, more blood running down her neck.

Arrow's face was that of terrified worry. He whispered soothingly, calming all of the heroes to an extent- mostly just annoying Batman.

Superman looked up and across the room, eying Batman. His glare couldn't been seen by the Dark Knight at that distance, but it shouted _'How-do-you-know-Ras?'_**(1)**

….

….

Speedy's and Kid Flash's jaws both dropped to the floor when they saw the Watchtower. Robin giggled. "Yeah- cool, huh?"

The two nodded soundlessly.

BlackHawk dragged them all up to the computers. "What do you think we'll need?" he asked Batgirl.

"Medical supplies!" Sparrow piped up, wringing out her long locks. "They might be hurt- and they might need it, ya' know?"

Everyone nodded, and BlackHawk turned to Kid Flash. "Kid, find the medical station- it should be close by, so that they can send injured heroes straight from the zeta pads to the station, in case they're injured."

With a nod, the ginger was gone in a bright flash of color. Everyone blinked sharply before shaking their heads. "Okay," Speedy spoke, holding his temples, "no more watching Kid Flash when he leaves or headache ensues."

Batgirl smiled.

"What else do we need?" Robin asked, standing with his hands on his hips. Wraith started jumping up and down, his hand in the air. BlackHawk smirked- even at thirteen, Terrence was just a big kid.

"Wraith?"

"More weapons," he said deviously. BlackHawk turned to Speedy.

"Right- we're all patched up with our belts," he gestured to his waist, "but you've only got that bow." Speedy scowled.

"I only need my bow."

BlackHawk scowled right back. Why was this kid so challenging?

Robin suddenly jumped from the computer chair to Speedy's back. To everyone's surprise, the archer didn't flinch. Robin crawled up Speedy's back to sit on his shoulders, and the teen smiled up at him, amused. "Yes, Robin?"

The boy contemplated speaking his opinion, but then said, "Maybe it _would _be a good idea for you to have s'more weapons- like a close-combat one- like a... a knife or something?"

Speedy nodded. "Sure."

BlackHawk grunted.

Batgirl pulled on Speedy's arm. "I saw a weapon's vault down the hall. Come with me."

With the little spider monkey still on his back, Speedy followed Batgirl down the hall. Sparrow, eager to join, followed, taking Speedy's hand into his. He looked down at the little girl, smiling. She wrapped both hands around one of his, looking closely at the bandages wrapped around his knuckles.

"Did you hurt yourself?"

He chuckled lightly. "No- the bandages _keep _me from hurting myself- getting or breaking calluses on my bow, since I use it so often."

Robin and Sparrow both made a sound of recognition.

Batgirl smiled at Speedy gently. "Oh... So you use that a lot?" She nodded to the bow strapped on the teen's back, of which Robin was lying on.

Speedy nodded, his hand bobbing up and down. "Yup- Oliver took me in about two years ago. Didn't take long for me to figure out about his... _activities_. I wanted to join, but he thought I was too young." Speedy shrugged, and his muscles tensed. He was upset. "Then, he heard about Wraith joining up, and decided that maybe I wasn't too young. We've been working on a costume and name, but the costume isn't ready- obviously."

Robin started twirling the arrow tucked into Speedy's (Arrow's) hat around his gloved finger. "So... you're a good shot?"

Speedy smirked, shrugging and lifting the boy higher onto his back. Robin curved his body to avoid Speedy's quiver. "Not to brag, but I'm almost as good as Arrow."

"We'll see about that," Batgirl said lowly as she opened the weapon's vault with a built-in hacker. "BlackHawk designed it," she spoke, making Speedy scowl.

The weapons vault was definitely just that- a weapon's vault. All sorts of guns, off-looking machines, swords, knives, and even more obscure things- wands, staffs, gauntlets, ext.- were propped up on the walls and on tables. Sparrow instantly ran off, Robin dropping off Speedy's back and darting after her.

"Don't touch _anything_!" Batgirl shouted after them, rolling her eyes. She grabbed Speedy's hand, making him feel warm and fuzzy inside, and led him over to where she saw a few knives. "Choose, archer-boy," she spoke with a smirk.

There were several cruel-looking daggers, twin-knives, teethed short-blades, and hunting daggers. Speedy grabbed a thigh-sheath and strapped it on, the grabbed a small, smooth-edged blade, pushing it in. "Alright," he said, standing, arms out. "I'm ready."

**BOOM!**

Speedy and Batgirl ran towards the sound.

They arrived behind a large shelf and saw two very 'innocent'-looking, masked and caped children. They stood next to a very large plasma gun that stood on legs, pointed at a huge hole bore into the wall.

Batgirl cocked her hip, raising an eyebrow at the children.

"Um..." Sparrow began.

"Sorry?" Robin finished.

….

….

BlackHawk and Speedy were both loaded up with food packets, water, and medical supplies. "Ready?" BlackHawk asked, trying to hide the nervousness in his voice. Kid Flash grabbed Robin's hand in his left, and Sparrow's in his right. The blonde girl was shaking in her boots, while Robin was frozen stiff. Both held tightly onto Kid Flash's fingers.

"Ready," the speedster croaked.

"Ready," Wraith and Batgirl squeaked in unison. To Wraith and BlackHawk's fury, Speedy grabbed Batgirl's forearm gently, offering a comforting squeeze.

In a flash of blue, the group was gone.

….

….

Superman lifted his head wearily. He could feel the Kryptonite working on him- disabling his powers, making his whole body shake with chills. His muscles lagged, and his body hung limp in their restraints.

All along the wall next to him, leading from the door to the large super-computer-like generator, was eight of the sixteen heroes. Hawkman, Hawkgirl, Green Lantern (Hal), Martian Manhunter, Batman, Green Lantern (John), and Red Tornado, in pieces, and Captain Atom. Craning his neck, Superman could see on his length, Aquaman, Green Arrow, Black Canary, then himself, Zatara, Captain Marvel, Wonder Woman, and Flash.

All of the heroes bore wounds from their battles.

Wonder Woman and Hawkgirl both had burns on their legs, arms, and chests from _something_, and Green Arrow's tunic was burnt slightly, showing a red chest. Even though he couldn't see beneath Batman's uniform, Superman bet that the 'invincible Dark Knight' had his own injuries.

Hawkgirl's and Hawkman's wings both were missing feathers, bleeding gently, slowly, from where the chains broke the light skin layer under the fluff and downy **(2)**. Hal had a huge welt on the side of his head that was already scabbing over. _At least he's not bleeding terribly_, Superman thought with a tiny bit of hope. Martian Manhunter's burns looked bad, and the torches were sending sparks over his face. Aquaman was thoroughly dehydrated, and it showed. Flash's left leg looked broken, and his face was the image of pain. Superman felt sorry for his good friend.

But he worried about Black Canary and John most. John's side bled heavily, staining the green in his uniform a deep brown. The bullet was still lodged in his side, but, from what Superman could tell, it hadn't hit any major organs. _Thank God_. Black Canary's face looked _almost _calm, as she was unconscious. Blood was still coming from her ears, and Superman knew that that _wasn't _good. Either damage had been done to her eardrums, due to the sound-proof glass, or to her brain- which would be even worse.

The Kryptonian sighed heavily, hanging his head.

Everything seemed hopeless.

….

….

Luscious greens and pinks, yellows and blues and red surrounded them. Robin's face lit up when he saw all of the beautiful plants and flowers around. He thought to himself_, This place it beautiful... But so terrible..._

Taking a few steps forward, the youngest vigilante dragged Kid Flash and Sparrow with him. They walked through the vines and branches for a few yards, then stopped abruptly.

Through the vines and branches, which provided a hiding spot, they could see a heavily guarded and locked-down building. It had metal tiles and planks all up the side, and the electronic doors had red lights around the inside of the door frames.

Wraith appeared out of _nowhere_, making all three jump. "Woah..." he hissed. "That place is guarded pretty heavy..."

It was true- there were probably fifty guards out, all equipped with large plasma and ray-guns. They had Glocks and hunting knives at their hips and ankles. Speedy swore under his breath. "This isn't looking too good..."

BlackHawk motioned for the group to split up. Kid Flash followed Batgirl (as Wraith had disappeared into the foliage) through the jungle around the building. This proved to be a challenge in itself.

Batgirl pulled a knife out of _nowhere_ (_Man, I've gotta get used to that _eventually_..._) and began to hack through the branches and vines noiselessly. No matter where she stepped, she was silent. Kid Flash seemed to blunder around her, stepping on every twig and dead leaf that lay on the forest floor.

Eventually, they made their way to the back of the building, which was just as heavily guarded as the front. Batgirl made a gesture (not _that _one, tee hee hee) and Wraith appeared, making Kid Flash jump. The Black boy grinned from behind his mask. **(3) **"Scared 'ya?"

"_No_..." the younger mumbled.

Batgirl spoke into her communicator. "Ready?"

"_Ten-Four, buddy," _came BlackHawk's scratchy voice.

The red-headed girl rolled her eyes. "What ever, 'Hawk."

"_Move in in five."_

The girl nodded.

"Oh, so we've got five min-" Kid Flash began, but Wraith grabbed the front of his uniform and threw him out into the clearing before him. The ginger fell to his feet with an 'ooph!'

When he finally stood, he saw Batgirl easily downing several guards with her bright yellow bat-a-rangs and a few knock-out pellets. Wraith came out of the shadows unexpectedly, taking his enemies by surprise, and knocked them out with two blue sticks he held that radiated with energy.

Kid Flash smirked. "Can't let them have _all _the fun..."

His Aunt Iris had taught him a bit about pressure points, being a chiropractor and all **(4)**, so the boy took that approach. He darted towards the guards, only a blur to them, and pinched their necks and karate-chopped their backs before they could react. In all, the ginger probably took out about ten before Batgirl and Wraith got the last forty.

"You got a head-start!" he objected as the older boy snickered.

"What _ever_."

Batgirl groaned and used her built-in hacker (_Thank yoooou, 'Hawk..._) to open the doors. Five men met them and were easily downed in a red, white, and yellow blur. Kid Flash appeared, leaning on the doorway and brushing his knuckles on his uniform's chest. He winked at Batgirl, and she groaned again.

"This is gonna' be a _looong _day..."

….

….

BlackHawk grunted loudly as he flip-kicked a guard down, turning to punch out another. He _almost _smirked at the archer, who was holding his own, fighting with his half-metal, half-pine bow. The kid could fight, he had to give it to him.

Keeping a vigilant eye on Sparrow and Robin, BlackHawk downed another guard.

….

….

Robin bent over, and Sparrow rolled on his back, coming out with a high-kick that knocked out the Brazilian man. The soldiers were all shouting in Brazilian, confusing the two junior-partners.

But they weren't called the Tandem Twins for nothin'!

Actually, they weren't called the Tandem Twins, as much as Robin thought that'd be _amazingly _awesome!

As he stabbed his bow-staff into the damp soil, using it to kick down a guard, Robin turned to Sparrow. "Hey, Spar?"

"Yeah?" she grunted, knocking over two men with her nun-chucks.

"This is fun, isn't it?"

She high-kicked another guard, landing in a crouch. She grinned at Robin, her nose scrunching up like a rabbit. It was actually kind of cute. "Yeah, Rob- BEHIND YOU!"

A heavy fist knocked Robin face-first into the soil.

Sparrow was about to dart over, but the hilt of a knife hit her solar plexus, making the girl gasp.

Suddenly, two neon green arrows hit over both attackers. Speedy darted over, downing the last two guards. He immediately crouched over and pulled both kids up. He ran his hands down Robin's arms, then over his chest, checking for injuries. He turned and did the same for Sparrow. "You guys alright?"

They nodded in unison.

BlackHawk ran over and saw Speedy talking to the kids. Suddenly, the fourteen-year-old stood and rounded on the other vigilante, his face furious. "I thought you were supposed to _protect _you family?"

BlackHawk snarled fiercely, "They can hold their own!"

"Obviously!"

"Who're _you _to correct _me_?"

"Oh, because you're a perfect goody-two-shoes!"

"To you, yeah!"

Speedy jumped at BlackHawk, but Robin appeared in front of him. "No, Speedy." Then, the boy turned to BlackHawk. "We're fine- see?" He did a back-flip to prove his point.

Shooting a glare at BlackHawk, Speedy spoke to Robin and Sparrow, trying to keep his voice even so that they didn't think he was mad at _them_. "Okay, but you two need to be more careful- no taking unnecessary risks, got it?"

The two nodded obediently, and BlackHawk grabbed their hands a bit forcefully. "C'mon. We've gotta' go."

….

….

Wraith panted as he crawled in the hot vent. Even with his thick costume, the hot metal burned his skin slightly. "_'Wraith will go in the vents!'_" he mocked as he turned corner, peering down into a grill. "Does Jase ask _me_? Noooooo..."

There were two guards laughing heavily and chittering in their native language. Wraith nodded and continued. "Right- soo... I should run into Spar and Rob in just a-"

He turned a corner and crawled head-first into Sparrow. She cried out, and Robin slapped a hand over her lips. Wraith sat back, tears coming to his eyes involuntarily as he rubbed his throbbing head. "Um... _Ouch_?"

Robin giggled, but slammed his other hand over his mouth in an instant. Wraith rolled his eyes and gestured for the kids to follow him. "C'mon," he hissed as he crawled in the tiny vents.

When he got back, he jumped down the ten feet onto the concrete floor. Looking up, he caught Sparrow in one arm and Robin in the other. "Ugh... Lay off the fat-cakes!"

Robin stuck out his tongue and blew at Wraith, making the boy smile.

Batgirl hugged Sparrow, then ran her fingers over her body just as Speedy had **(5)**. "Are you two alright?" she asked as she changed over to Robin.

Both groaned softly. "We're _fiiiiine_," Sparrow said, a bit too loudly.

Three guards ran around the corner and saw the five kids. One of them shouted, "_Intrusos_!" loudly, then fired.

Batgirl pushed Sparrow and Robin back just as one fired his Glock. It hit her shin, and she went down with a cry. His eyes blazing, Wraith went at the man. He knocked him over as Kid Flash downed the other two.

His fists tight, the small metal implants under the fabric screaming, he began to beat the man's face heartlessly. "You... Bastard!" he screamed and punched his lights out.

"Wraith!" came a small voice.

Wraith still beat the man.

"WRAITH!" the same voice screamed.

Two small hands grabbed his shoulders, and Wraith instinctively threw his arms out, hitting Robin's face. The boy fell back into Sparrow's arms, looking up at his 'brother' fearfully.

Wraith was at a loss for words. His breath caught in his throat. "Robin- Rob, I-"

"Guys!" came Kid Flash's frantic voice.

They all ran over to where he sat on his legs with Batgirl's torso in his lap. It was evident that she was in immense pain, her face screwed up tightly as she grit her teeth, clutching at the concrete flooring for something to break.

Sparrow took her hand tightly, tears in her eyes.

Wraith inspected Batgirl's leg. The bullet had hit her shin straight-on, and a sliver of the bone was sticking out of her skin, making blood go everywhere. The bullet was lodged in her bone, another worry. "Robin," Wraith ordered, trying to keep his voice from shaking. "Get out your pain relievers and some gauze. Kid Flash, keep her down."

Wraith pulled out his long knife, sheathed with heavy black leather and Kevlar. He told Batgirl to bite down on it. "I need to set the bone."

She nodded and bit down.

As Wraith set her leg, her pained screamed could still be heard beyond the muffling knife. Kid Flash let tears boil over gently. If this was what hero work did to you, maybe he wasn't cut out to be a hero...

Wraith grabbed the knife from Batgirl's mouth and held it to the break in her leg. "Kid Flash," he called the speedster around. Sparrow took Batgirl's head into her lap. "Here, hold the knife steady while I wrap it."

"WHAT?"

Wraith grumbled, "Shut _up_! There should be more guards-"

As if on cue, five heavily-armed men darted forward. Robin stood instantly and, in his furious rage, kicked and punched all into blackness. He turned back to see a shocked Kid Flash and Wraith.

"What?"

Wraith shook his head and began to wrap gauze around Batgirl's set leg, using the knife as a splint.

"_Ohhh_..."

"Shut up, Kid."

He finished, then pulled out a tiny, indestructible syringe. Spinning on the needle, he injected some painkillers into the metal. Rolling up Batgirl's sleeve, he gently injected it. "This's gonna make you sleepy, Bats."

She nodded, eyelids feeling suddenly heavy. "I'll carry her," Wraith said to Kid Flash and the Twins. "You three will need to take out the guards-"

"Got it!" Kid Flash squeaked, darting off, Robin and Sparrow behind him.

Wraith rolled his eyes to the ceiling. "Oh, dear God help me..."

….

….

Speedy and BlackHawk were scanning the halls for more guards. They had a trail of unconscious bodies behind them. Speedy's blue eyes took in BlackHawk's suit. The silver hawk on his chest was a dead give-away. Speedy's costume design was for a loose red tunic and darker red pants. He wanted a yellow hat and bow- after all, yellow was a happy color. Roy needed more _happy _in his life...

When his parents died, a part of Roy had died as well. After all, watching your parents be shot down in your own house- where you thought you were safe and sound, well... It's not something _any _ten-year-old kid should watch... **(6)**

"Ready?"

BlackHawk's voice shocked Speedy back to real life. "Huh?"

BlackHawk rolled his black-lensed eyes to the ceiling. "Pay attention, _Speedy_. We're going upstairs to meet up with the others."

Speedy nodded, licking his dry lips. "Ready."

BlackHawk dashed up the stairs, leaving Speedy in his dust. The younger boy snarled and growled, his upper lip curling. _I'll have to put him in his place... _Using his bow as a hook, Speedy jumped onto the bannister and jumped up a story, catching the ledge. He pulled himself up and launched over to the wall, where he back-flipped off and landed standing, smirking. BlackHawk came to a stop in front of the smirking teen.

"Show-off."

The two made their way down the hall, encountering several guards as they did so. They were getting closer and closer to the containment room.

Apparently.

_Hopefully_.

Speedy grabbed an electric arrow and dug it into one man's collar bone, turning harshly and digging it into another man's gut. Both fell to the ground, having seizures as their mouths foamed.

BlackHawk, having already defeated his guys, eyed Speedy nervously. "Is that an electric arrow or a rabid arrow?"

The younger shrugged.

Suddenly, BlackHawk had a sharpened bird-a-rang out and threw it inches from Speedy's neck. The teen froze as it went by, then shrieked, "WHAT THE HECK!"

BlackHawk tilted his head, nodding towards behind his reluctant-partner. The archer turned and scowled. A man was on the ground, moaning. Speedy stalked past BlackHawk, who chuckled. "What, no 'thank-you'?"

"Shut up, _'Hawk_..."

….

….

Kid Flash was leaning against the door, munching on his candy bar (Crunch bar! WHAT!) and watching Robin and Sparrow stretch. Batgirl was lying, her body propped up against the door. Her face was pained slightly as she smiled at Speedy and BlackHawk. Wraith looked nervous under his 'brother's' accusing gaze. Speedy crouched next to Batgirl, a hand hovering over her leg. "What happened?"

She chuckled and winced. "Ah... Those Glocks can pack a punch, right?"

BlackHawk shook his head. "God..." he hissed. Pinching the bridge of his nose, he watched Batgirl patronizingly. "Are you okay for the rest of the mission?"

She nodded, throwing an arm over Speedy's neck. "Help me up, would'ja?"

BlackHawk crouched near the control panel that glowed red next to the door. "Get ready," he said sternly. "There are gonna be guards inside."

There came a suddenly Brazilian cry, and Sparrow turned to BlackHawk nervously. "Hurry!"

The doors slid open, and the seven darted in. BlackHawk quickly shut the doors behind them.

He turned and saw Kid Flash and Robin standing over two guards. They both smirked up at him cheesily. BlackHawk rolled his eyes.

"What... Are... You doing here?" came a very angry voice.

All heads looked up.

All around the room was- "The League!" Batgirl gasped as Speedy set her down against the wall.

Batman was _glaring_, a terrifying, soul-murdering glare, at his children.

BlackHawk shrugged and smirked, crossing his arms over his chest. "We thought we'd come save your butts."

The other Leaguers watched, some unamused and some (Green Arrow) amused to the point of laughing.

Suddenly, Kid Flash was all the way across the room, having darted down the walkway. He pressed his hands up against Flash's container. "Uncle- I mean, Flash! Are you okay?"

Flash looked up slowly, trying to hide his pain. "I'll be fine..."

The boy stood back, smiling, his chest out and up, hands on his hips. "Kid Flash!"

Flash cocked an eyebrow. "Yeah, uh... I don't think so."

"But U- Flash!"

Batman then saw the two smaller children. His furious glare worsened- if that was possible. "You brought _them_?"

"Sparrow and Robin," Speedy corrected.

"And who are you?" Hawkman asked the boy.

"Speedy," Roy smirked. BlackHawk rolled his eyes while Kid Flash snickered. "IT'S A PERFECTLY GOOD NAME!"

Green Arrow called out, "Speedy! What- How-"

"Our fault," BlackHawk spoke suddenly, stepping forward. "Me, Batgirl, and Wraith needed help to bust you guys out. So, we went to Flash's house and got some help, and Arrow's house and got some help."

"Now, there are four new heroes in the world!" Robin said proudly.

Batman cocked an eyebrow. "You mean two-"

"One," Flash corrected.

Speedy grinned when Green Arrow said nothing. The other kids began to object.

Batman's gaze fell on Batgirl, and his jaw tensed. "What happened?"

Everyone froze, and all eyes looked up at BlackHawk. _Of course, 'Hawk! You _are _the leader, after all... _"She got shot in the leg. Broken, definitely-"

"I'm fine," the red-head interrupted, glaring at her 'brother'.

After a pause, Hawkgirl shouted, "Are you gonna bust us out or _not_?"

BlackHawk blushed. "Oh- right."

The group (minus Batgirl) ran down the walkway, avoiding the pitfall into black, towards the large machine. It pulsated with power, radiating fine heat. BlackHawk looked all over it, then found a small control panel. "This should open the containers," he said and linked up to it.

Suddenly, the electronic doors swept open. Speedy instantly had an arrow cocked and ready, even though it was too far a shot- even for Ollie. Robin had his bow staff out, and Sparrow held her nun-chucks tightly. Wraith clutched his twin ecrisma sticks, and BlackHawk pulled out a stun-gun.

The oldest gasped.

"Ras..."

The old man had Batgirl in one arm, held tightly to his chest, a knife held to her throat. An evil glint was in his eyes. "Put down your weapons."

Time froze.

**(1)- Yes, Batman _really was _trained by Ras A Ghul. _REALLY! _How the HECK do you think he's so frickin' beastly! I'll tell you how... He's Batman... nuff' said.**

**(2)- "downy" is that fluffy little feathery fur that's on baby birds, but also underneath the feathers of adult birds.**

**(3)- Okay, I am REEEEEEEALLY not trying to offend anyone by describing Wraith (Terrence) as 'Black', but I just need another word so that I'm not always saying, "Wraith, Wraith, Wraith, Wraith, Wraith, Wraith, Wraith-" because how annoying would that be, really? And, when I say "African-American", some Black people flip out and are like "I'M NOT AFRICAN!" so... I just say Black. I'm not a racist- I love _all _races. So deal with it.**

**(4)- I just made Iris a chiropractor for the heck of it, so don't tell me about my "Comic-book mishaps". It's my story. It's my version. It's my imagination... So shut it before I shut it for you.**

**(5)- Okay, I'm REEEEEEEEEALLY not trying to made Speedy and Batgirl sound like pedophiles, if you're thinking that (*cough, cough* perverts *cough, cough*) but, you know how, like, when parents lose their kid in a store, they check them all over for injuries- yeah. That's what this is, people. I'm not a pervert or a pedophile, I swear.**

**(6)- Again, I'm just making up Roy's past, so don't go all comic-nerd on me, okay? Again, MY STORY! so deal.**

**ANYWAYS!**

**one more chappie!**

**:)**

**I'm sad that no one laughed at my word "Flash-osiphy"... :*(**

**weview?**

**(Or Dickie-Bird will unleash the Robin-Glare of DOOOM!)**


	20. Becoming Robin IV Conclusion

**SPOILERS for Artemis's past!**

**Okay, SUUUUUUUUUUUPER long...**

**I own nothing except for... *takes deep breath*... Wraith, Terrence, Jason, BlackHawk, Blaine, and Sparrow. *GASP* Okay... huh... anything else?**

**Okay, I'd just like to say anything I ever say or HAVE said that offends anyone, I'm really NOT trying to offend you. Truely, I'm a nice person (or so I've been told often), so please, if I offend or annoy you deeply, tell me so that I can apologize.**

**Okay... Hrm... We left off with Ras holding a knife to Batgirl's throat...**

Nobody moved.

Ras a Ghul snarled and repeated, "Drop. Your. Weapons."

Batman's eyes flashed with pure _rage_ when he saw a trickle of red run down Barbara's throat.

Suddenly, Speedy dropped his bow. Wraith took off his belt and threw it on the ground with a small _crunch_. Sparrow and Robin both took off their belts and let them fall to the floor slowly.

BlackHawk didn't move.

The old Asian man glared at BlackHawk. "Jason- Lower. Your. Weapons."

BlackHawk's eyes widened a bit, and he gasped, "How- how do you-"

Ras just laughed. "I trained Bruce when he was a young man- I think I would know who his children are."

All of the Justice Leaguers' eyes flashed towards Batman, some holding anger, some confusion, some pity, and some humor (Arrow and Flash. Grr.). Batman's chest rose and fell heavily as he tried to calm himself. Even with his uniform on, you could see how tense his arms and legs were. His fists clenched so tightly that the Kevlar over his knuckles almost ripped, wearing thin.

Ras spoke again, "I am giving you _one more chance_, Jason. Drop. Your. Belt."

Batgirl licked her lips, her eyebrows forced together in pain. She barely shook her head, mouthing, _'No- no, Jase. No!' _

With a growl, BlackHawk dropped his belt to the floor.

Ras threw Batgirl into the ground, stomping straight on her injured leg. Her shrill shriek ran through the cavernous room in a banshee echo.

Three things happened in this instance.

1) BlackHawk grabbed up his belt, throwing it across his shoulders, and ran towards his sister.

2) Kid Flash ran and snatched up Batgirl before running her back behind the generator/super-computer.

3) Speedy grabbed up his bow and threw Sparrow and Robin to the side.

BlackHawk reached Ras in record time, unleashing a flying kick. But the old man (who was _not _as frail as he seemed), caught BlackHawk's foot and threw him back. The teen did a back-flip and landed in a half-crouch, half-split. He withdrew a sharpened bat-a-rang and launched himself back at Ras. They continued to battle, BlackHawk throwing kicks and punches, fake-outs and drop-kicks, while Ras simply played with the teen, fighting him off.

Speedy ran forward, unleashing arrows upon Ras. As they rained down, BlackHawk jumped away.

True to his training, Ras dodged each arrow swiftly before throwing a ninja-star at Speedy. The boy dodged just in time, the star only cutting his arm minutely. Blood formed along the wound, but Speedy shook it off as he rained down another torrent of arrows.

"Kid Flash!" Captain Atom's voice came. In a blur, the ginger stood before the blue and red-clad man, his hands against the glass. The man spoke in his country twang, "Can you vibrate through the glass?"

Kid Flash's face was that of worry and fear. "N-No. I- I just got my powers a few weeks ago-"

"Can you try?"

Kid was already visibly shaking. He nodded, licking his lips. Slowly, he took a step back.

Then, all you saw was a blurry shake of colors. Kid Flash _ran _at the glass, and it shattered.

The boy was flung back, over the walkway. His fingers gripped the side firmly, his legs dangling over shadows.

In this time, Wraith had joined the fray between Ras, BlackHawk, and Speedy. Ras was a master at every martial arts you could think of, and- even with BlackHawk, who had been doing 'hero-work' for years- the three were no match for him.

Robin and Sparrow looked around nervously, unsure of what they were supposed to be doing. Then, Robin's masked eyes lay on Captain Atom's container- the glass was completely gone, except for a few sharp shards that lay on the floor, but the metal restraints still held the hero back. The boy turned to Sparrow, but then saw Kid Flash dangling by his fingertips. "Spar!" he cried over the noise of fighting. "Go get Captain Atom! I've got KF!"

Sparrow nodded and darted over to the 'man'. "You got it, little miss?" he asked as Sparrow stood in front of him. She nodded and, with a grunt, jumped up, grabbing Atom's foot. He stayed stiff, allowing for her to climb up his body. Pressing a small button on the wrist of her glove, Sparrow opened up a tiny blowtorch. She attacked Atom's restraints fiercely.

Meanwhile, Robin was reaching for Kid Flash's other arm. His fingertips just _barely _brushed along the other boy's. "Hold on, KF!" he cried.

"THAT'S KIND OF THE IDEA, ROBIN!"

Ras unleashed about ten stars at the three boys. Wraith darted into the shadows behind Ras, behind several pipes and vents. When the stars hit, hot steam hissed out, enveloping their small area in fog.

Speedy groped around the floor for his bow, which had been knocked from his hand by the stars.

BlackHawk pressed a tiny button on the inside bottom of his mask, and heat-vision appeared in his black lenses. He saw to figures before him- Speedy, on the floor, and Ras- with a knife raised high, about to slam into Speedy's back.

"NO!" BlackHawk screamed, jumping forward.

The knife hit.

….

….

"Intruders?" the little girl asked her mother, who frowned, drawing her kimono around her body tighter. She looked down at the little girl, whose choppy black hair fell around her face gently, like feathers. Two sharp pieces of bangs flew upwards, looking like cat ears.

"Yes, darling, but it is nothing the Master cannot handle."

The little girl nodded, biting her lip. She fingered the sais at her hips, watching as her mother undid the little blonde girl's braid. Jade's sister had deep navy eyes, like their father, and she was the pride-and-joy of her mother.

Jade _envied _Artemis with every bone in her body.

_I'll show her... _the young assassin thought as she slipped out of the metal room silently.

….

….

The knife sunk into BlackHawk's gut deeply. Blood rushed out in rivers, cascading to the floor. Jason's eyes went wide beneath his mask, and he rasped for air as he grabbed Ras's hands tightly. He could only see the man's mouth in the fog, but he could see Ras's lips curl upward sadistically.

….

….

"Grab my hand!"

"I'm... TRYING!"

"WELL TRY HARDER!"

"YOU'RE ANNOYING!"

"SHUT UP!"

Robin's fingers wrapped around Kid Flash's, but that was enough for the young vigilante. With all of his aerialist strength, the child pulled backwards, using his rubber-soled shoes to give him traction on the walkway.

Kid Flash cried out as his bicep tore slightly, emitting a stinging pain throughout his whole arm. Slowly, though, he felt himself being pulled up and into the air.

But he didn't stop at the walkway.

Then, the boy realized that there were two hands under his armpits.

Looking up, Wally grinned as Captain Atom set him down on the ground. Grabbing Robin and Sparrow, Atom pulled all three in front of him. His glowing eyes were fierce as he said, "Free the others- get the healed first."

They nodded, and Robin darted off over to Green Arrow' container. The archer beamed as Robin used a glass-cutter to open up the prison. As the child stepped inside, he did _something _on his wrist-top computer, and the restraints opened, dropping Arrow onto the tiny glass bottom with Robin. He ruffled the boy's hair.

Robin didn't pull away.

He leaned into the gesture.

"Good job, kid," Arrow said with a grin. He jumped out of the glass, Robin following him. Across the room, Sparrow had freed both Thangarians and was helping them get the chains off their wings. Besides a bit of dried blood, all four feathery limbs were fine.

Hawkgirl, flames in her eyes, dived into the smog with a roar cry.

….

….

Two hands grabbed Ras and lifted him out of the hot air. The hands were small, petite, and strong. "HURAGH!" came the shriek, and Hawkgirl flung Ras across the room. Hawkman caught him, then slammed the old man towards the ground.

Ras turned at the last moment, rolling and standing, smiling like he was the anti-Christ. "This is getting interesting..."

Green Arrow, Martian Manhunter, and Captain Marvel suddenly appeared, and Ras a Ghul smirked harder. "Maybe _too _interesting..."

….

….

The metal doors slid open, and Jade darted in, a sai in either fist. She first laid eyes on a red-headed boy in green, leaning over a bloody body. "Hey!" she cried. "Who are you?"

The boy, his face pure rage, stood, his chest heaving. His nose crinkled up in a snarl. "Speedy. You?"

The girl- maybe thirteen- smiled seductively. "Cheshire."

Speedy unsheathed his knife and held it, blade to his forearm. "You work for the Shadows, don't you?"

Cheshire took on a stance, one foot raised in the air, both arms out. "Yup. And you work for the League, don't you?"

"Yup."

With that, the two were engaged in fierce hand-to-hand combat.

….

….

Things were not looking up for Ras.

He managed to avoid every attack that came his way, but he did not unleash any attack himself.

_Why were we so scared? _Arrow thought as he jumped towards Ras.

Suddenly, the old man turned and flung a sharpened needle- an inch thick and six long- straight at Green Arrow's chest. He ducked, but the needle dug itself into his shoulder, just where he had no armor. Crying out a curse word, Arrow fell to his knees.

Hawkgirl and Hawkman dived at the same time, their masked eyes looking frightening with tiny black pupils. They were both about to deliver killing punches to Ras's temple, but, at the _last possible moment_, the old man drew two katana from _who-knows-where _and slashed open either's wing. Both fell with synchronized cries of anguish.

Martian Manhunter, still weakened by the fire, stood in front of Ras. He raised his hands, but a purple glow hit his face.

"AURGH!" Manhunter fell on his side, pushing his body up with one arm. He looked up and saw a very tall, white-skinned and white-haired woman in a tight violet dress that showed too much chest and too much leg with its high-thigh-slit.

"Thalia," he growled. "Witch."

She raised a manicured hand, her pure white eyes glowing radiantly, and lifted Manhunter to the air. Snarling in her thick accent, Thalia spoke to a shaded figure behind her, "What do I do with him?"

The figure stepped out.

J'onn's eyes narrowed.

The man was bald, in a jumpsuit of sickly yellow with black straps across the chest and waist, holding a gun to his armpit and two to his thighs. Grinning, he spoke, "Finish him-"

Out of nowhere, a bright yellow-painted piece of metal flung out and slashed a long scratch from Luthor's ear to his lip. He was flung back, but didn't fall. Looking up through his blazing anger, Lex watched as the black-clad little blondie darted towards him. She gave a loud battle-cry and punched Luthor straight in the noggin, knocking him off his feet.

"Lex!" Thalia cried, dropping Manhunter.

The Martian quickly stood and darted forward, pulling Thalia into his arms. His eyes gave a sudden orange glow, and Thalia went down screaming. She hit the floor in a deep comatose state of mind.

Manhunter looked up and blinked harshly. He saw a little girl in a black cape punching and kicking Luthor silly. J'onn would have grinned it Lex didn't suddenly pull the gun.

In a blink, a flash of yellow, red, and white picked up the girl and brought her behind Manhunter. J'onn turned swiftly and saw a ten-year-old ginger holding the other child in his arms bridal-style. She blushed and quickly gave him a peck on the cheek before running off.

The boy gave a goofy grin and ran after her.

Lex suddenly shot, hitting Manhunter's back. The Martian growled at the pin-prick-like twinge of pain. Turning back to Luthor, he raised the man into the air with a thought, flinging the Glock across the room.

"You will be still now," came J'onn's thick accent.

Luthor's eyes rolled into the back of his head, and he dropped to the floor.

….

….

The smog had cleared by now.

Batman gave no thanks to Wonder Woman as she undid his bounds. Instead, he bolted over to his 'son', who was bleeding out violently.

The silver hawk on Jason's uniform was now a frightening shade of red. Flash, having limped over even with his broken leg, was pushing down around the blade hilt that stuck out of BlackHawk's stomach. Blood gurgled from the teen's mouth, and he tilted his head over slightly to give a pain-filled smirk to his mentor.

"H-H-Hey, B-B-Bats..." he stuttered.

Batman's hand ran down Jason's face, gently wiping up some blood from his chin. "Hang on, 'Hawk."

BlackHawk gave a nearly imperceptible nod. Batman looked up to Flash, who was pale from his own blood-loss. "Get 'Hawk, John, Canary, and Corin _out_." Wonder Woman came up from behind, wincing slightly from her burns. Hal floated behind her, carting John over his left shoulder and Canary over his right.

"What can we do?"

"Help Flash," Batman grunted and stood, seemingly flying off towards the door.

Wonder Woman knelt down and picked Jason up into her arms. Flash threw an arm over the Amazonian's shoulder. "C'mon, Wondie. Let's book it."

….

….

Cheshire's sai slid straight across the cut on Speedy's arm. He swore (thank you, Oliver) and jumped back, drawing an arrow. He let it fly at Cheshire, but she kicked it out of the air. Lunging forward, the girl threw Speedy to the ground, pinning his arms next to his head. She straddled his body and bent her face down next to his, smirking. Her coal-black eyes glistened with hatred and mischief. "You're cute- if you weren't playing for the wrong side."

"You're the one that's on the wrong side!" Speedy spat.

Cheshire chuckled. "We'll see..."

She raised her sai into the air, but a sudden black blur shoved her away. Cheshire shrieked and hit her head _hard _against the wall, knocking her unconscious successfully. Robin stood, wiping spit from his chin, and turned to Speedy, grinning. "How's that for a rookie?"

Speedy rolled his eyes. "Let's get Batgirl and get out."

….

….

Lex sat up, groaning and rubbing his head. The only people left in the room were Green Arrow, Batman, Superman, the Hawks, who were slowly getting to their feet, the side-kicks (minus the oldest... hm...), Captain Atom, and Captain Marvel.

Standing, Luthor ignored the bloody gash on his cheek. He raised up the semi-automatic that was on his hip and aimed it at Batman, who was 'sparring' with Ras, Superman wearily standing in the background, leaning himself up against the generator.

"Bon voy auge, Batsie..." Luthor smirked and pulled the trigger-

Nothing happened.

He snarled and drew his other gun, but a high-pitched voice rang out behind him. "Uhn, uhn, _uuuuuh_, Lexie, boy!"

Luthor turned and saw the injured female- the red-head- standing awkwardly behind him, inches from the pitfall. She held a rope-round of bullets in either hand as she smiled. "'Ya know, you're an idiot when you're too busy sleeping to watch what your enemy's doing."

Luthor growled loudly, roaring more like it, and threw the empty guns as the girl, but two green arrows shot the metal projectiles from the sky. Two black bodies knocked Luthor over, either one pinning his arms to the floor.

It was the blondie and the black-haired boy. The black-haired boy smirked at his 'sister'. "Hey, Spar, should we?"

She shrugged, still fighting to keep Luthor down. _How is she this strong?_ "I think we _should_."

They both pulled out little spray-cans from their utility belts and sprayed Luthor in the face.

"PEPPER-SPRAY!" the Twins screamed before running off.

Luthor howled in pain, but a sudden metal-plated boot kicked him out of his misery. Wraith cocked an eyebrow as the two Twins did a victory dance. Speedy was holding Batgirl in his arms, her head leaning into his chest as her face scrunched up in pain.

Wraith grabbed both kids' collars and pulled them to face him. "We still have our extra-mission."

They frowned at him, confused. He smirked. "Get Kid Flash and meet me outside the room."

….

….

Ras and Batman traded blows, Ras jumping away as Batman just barely kicked his side, or Batman ducking just enough for the old man to just clip his mask. "Bruce, you have... _grunt_... gotten better."

Batman growled, "I learned... _grunt_... from the worst... _grunt_... so I need practice-"

There came a familiar whining, and Batman smirked, flipping out of the way as a bright red beam fired straight at Ras. Sadly, though, the man lived up to his reputation and jumped away just as Atom's beam fired.

Captain Marvel appeared behind Ras, grabbing the old man into his arms and holding him tightly. With a grunt, Ras kicked up and back, hitting a pressure point on Marvel's knee. The hero cried out and loosened his grip just enough for the assassin to slip away. Green Arrow appeared, holding one of Speedy's arrows, and flung it like a ninja-star at Ras. The old man caught it in the air.

As Arrow's eyes widened, Ras aimed the arrow at him. Batman lunged, and Ras turned, dodging the Dark Knight and throwing the arrow at the same time. It pierced Captain Atom's arm, making light explode outwards. The soldier cried out and fell from the sky, clutching at the 'light' as he tried to keep it from 'bleeding' out of his suit. Marvel helped his fellow Captain up, and Green Arrow shouted, "GET OUT!"

Marvel nodded and, without further prying, flew away sharply, his white cape waving behind him.

Green Arrow turned back to Batman and Ras, who were again going at it- not just with kicks and punches, but also with words.

Ras smirked, seemingly unaffected by all of the blows so far, while Batman's chest and shoulders heaved up and down. _He _has _to be a god, _Arrow thought as he lurched towards Ras. "RAUGH!"

Ras grabbed Arrow's suit-front and flung him- with an unrealistic strength- towards Batman, who dodged just in time. Arrow was flung into the ground with a grunt. He sat up wearily, watching as Batman slashed at Ras with his bare hands.

Ras back-flipped away, landing in a crouch. He smirked as Batman withdrew slightly. "Getting tired, my pupil?"

"No... Just distracting you."

Ras's eyes grew wide, and a sudden bright red light threw him across the room. It burned through his robes, singing his back, and sent him into the generator. Superman limped forward, again firing his heat-vision at the generator.

It sparked and fizzed.

Quickly, Batman pulled Superman's arm over his shoulder. Green Arrow grabbed the Kryptonian's other arm, and the three ran to the door.

Batman's eyes surveyed the room. No one else was there besides Ras- Lex and Thalia were gone, as were his foster-children.

Biting back a sigh of relief, Batman reached the exit with his two cohorts just as the generator/super-computer exploded, sending parts and vents and pipes all into the air. The walkway burned and collapsed into itself, making the generator drop into the Earth.

Batman froze and looked back at the empty black. _No one could have survived that..._

And they left.

….

….

Speedy had chosen to take Batgirl outside to join the other heroes. He set her down on the ground next to Aquaman, who was looking rather red in the face. Flash sat on Batgirl's left, smirking at her. "We're twinkies."

She gave him a pained smile.

Captain Marvel set Captain Atom down in front of the three, the blue man scowling. "You didn't have to carry me."

Marvel rolled his chocolate eyes. "Just accept it."

Wonder Woman stepped forward, Black Canary's arm over her shoulder. The woman, her blonde hair blood-stained, let her head loll tot the side. Her mouth was open slightly, and it was apparent that she was unconscious. "Here, you can carry her," Diana snapped as she forced Canary into Marvel's arms. The man didn't seem to mind. (*_wink, wink_*)

When Diana saw Batgirl, she paled. The teen girl shook her head. "I'm fine, Wonder Wo-"

"Jason's hurt."

Batgirl's breath caught in her throat. Her fearful eyes looked up to the older hero. "W-What?"

Speedy looked away, rubbing his neck. Batgirl's eyes blazed. "You- You _knew _and you didn't _tell _me?" she shrieked. Barbara tried to stand, only succeeding in making her leg make a _crack_. Crying out, this time in pain, she fell into Aquaman's arms. The blonde stood, lifting Batgirl like she weighed a ton. Obviously, he was still dehydrated.

"We... we must get... get back," he rasped.

Wonder Woman nodded. "Batman will be here any moment-"

As if on cue, the Dark Knight appeared. He frowned at Speedy. "Where are the others?"

Speedy's eyes widened behind his mask, and he said snappily, "I'm not going to s-"

Batman was instantly holding the archer off the ground with on hand. "_Where are they_?"

Diana was about to step forward, but Flash grabbed her ankle. He mouthed, _'No,' _gently, and Diana's mouth opened in her anger. It then snapped shut. _Maybe I should just see what happens..._

Speedy gulped. "You'll make them-"

"WHERE ARE THEY?"

Speedy growled and kicked his legs, knocking himself out of Batman's arms. The Dark Knight pulled himself to his full height, his being simply _glowing _with fury. The teen-archer licked his lips, looking down to the ground. He spoke nothing.

Green Arrow stepped forward, oblivious to the previous interactions. "The building is set to blow-"

"WHAT?" Speedy squeaked. Everyone's heads snapped to him (except for Batman, who had been giving Speedy the Daddy-Bats-Glare this whole time).

Speedy's breath came quick, and he paled, sweat rolling down his neck. "They- Wraith, Robin, Sparrow, and Kid Flash- they- they're looking for the kryptonite! They found files on it on the Watchtower, and they wanted to get it for you! I- I had to bring Batgirl out- she- she's injured and-"

Batman listened no more. He bolted back towards the building, Wonder Woman on his heels. Captain Marvel turned to go, but he suddenly realized he still had Black Canary in his arms. He was about to set her down, but Flash spoke out, "No. We need less people in there- don't worry. They'll get the kids out." It was so reasonable, that no one objected. They were all to shocked that Flash said something reasonable for once.

But, truthfully, Barry's whole being was vibrating with his nerves.

His nephew-

_His nephew_-

Was inside a building, trying to be a hero, when it was set to blow at any minute.

_Oh, God_, the speedster thought as he gently pulled Barbara to settle on his lap, _oh, God, please bring him back to me..._

….

….

Wraith darted down the halls, ignoring the guards he passed. Apparently, someone had been rather mad, because all of their throats were slit.

Sparrow and Robin, however, could not ignore the bodies. Sparrow's face (what you could see of it) was turning green, while Robin's was turning a funky shade of violet. Kid Flash's mind was running too fast to notice anything around him- even his companions.

They turned left and right, right and left, Wraith leading the way. He frantically kept looking down at the holographic map on his wrist-communicator to the walls before him. _Floor 2... Wing C... Room... Room... Room- _"Room 8-16!" he cried, kicking in the door. It flew off its hinges (_Wooden... Hrm- must be an old door._) and fell inwards-

On top of a mop.

Wraith swore under his breath. They were in a broom closet.

"Where- What- How- When-" Kid Flash stammered, too fast for anyone to understand. Wraith began to shake in his boots, his face turning blue.

"No, no, no, no, no- This- this is all wrong! This- no. It should be right here- I mean- no, no, no, no, no-"

"I can help you," came a soft, cracked- yet sweet- voice.

The four turned and saw a young girl- maybe eleven- with a long, yellow braid. It fell down her back, plaited to her head with a silver flower. Her eyes were deep navy, and she wore a short, green kimono. She smiled gently at Kid Flash, taking his hand. His cheeks turned red. "Call me Ravager," she spoke softly, trying to calm them. Her eyes flashed towards Sparrow, and she smiled, white teeth in a perfect line. She held out both hands to the younger children. Robin took her hand instantly, and Sparrow followed swiftly after.

Artemis blinked at Wraith, who was scowling at her. "Why should we trust _you_?"

She frowned at him innocently. "I'm your only choice if you want to get what you seek, then get out- _alive_." When she said '_alive_', she sounded like that creepy girl that sings, "_They're heeeere..._"

Kid Flash shivered- she was cute, but creepy.

Artemis stood there stoically, blinking.

Wraith was still suspicious. "Why isn't this map showing me the right area?"

Artemis smirked mischievously. "The Master moved the kryptonite after my sister and I found it- but he doesn't know that we again found it. What you seek is near."

There she went again- going from speaking like someone from the 21st century, to some 'ancient-knight-or-ninja-person-thingie'. Wraith swallowed sharply, then licked his lips.

Right now, _he _was the leader.

His masked eyes met Artemis's deep navy ones, and he whispered, "Show me."

She smiled.

….

….

Batman pounded through the hallways on the second floor, Wonder Woman on his heels. They passed the bodies, tuning them out. Batman focused only on the path before him and the three separate trackers on his wrist-computer.

They suddenly went off the map.

Batman froze, his eyes squinting as he scowled. _They're in the room... They've found it..._

If he wasn't so worried, he might be proud.

Wonder Woman stopped shortly behind him. "What is it?" He didn't answer, and the woman pursed her lips. _He may not be one to talk, but he _can _work his lips..._

Looking back up at the hallway before him, Batman's scowl went deeper (if that were possible). He saw a black-haired little girl, holding two sais in her white-gloved hands that rested on pink-covered hips. She pointedly frowned at him were her cocoa lips. "Who are you? Cat-man?"

He didn't give her the satisfaction.

She sneered. "My name is Jade- but you can call me Cheshire. I'm looking for my sister- and you're looking for someone, too, I suppose?"

Batman said nor did anything. Wonder Woman stiffened as she inspected the girl- her arms were bare on her short, sleeveless pink kimono. Her biceps were muscular for a child her age- thirteen, perhaps- and her bare legs were also toned well. _So... she is a warrioress..._

Jade chuckled. "I know where what you're looking for is. If you leave after you get it, you can have it. _If _I find my sister.

Batman's eyes narrowed further, and he bit the bait. "Why would you help me?"

She smiled gently, reminding Batman of a black cat. "Why not?"

And she turned swiftly, bounding off into the halls.

Reluctantly, Batman followed her, Wonder Woman, trusting his judgment, continuing on with the Dark Knight.

….

….

J'onn had managed to stop the bleeding, but not before Jason lost a good quart of blood. His face was stark white (they had removed his mask), and his cheeks seemed shrunken in. Barbara (she had removed her cowl, as well) sat next to him, her eyes full of tears. She gasped for air as she fought back sobs.

Speedy sat a good ways away, on a stump. He watched as J'onn, his eyes still glowing, continued to work on Jason.

A groan and the sound of squeaking leather announced Green Arrow's arrival. The man licked his lips, frowning. He blinked in the black night, his face going calm as he took in a deep breath. "What's on your mind, kiddo?"

"Is he gonna be okay?"

Oliver took off his mask, playing with it in his hands. Speedy knew his game- nonchalant movements to try and relax the situation.

With Roy's temper, it mostly worked.

And right now, the red-head was seething, true to his nature.

"He should be okay- according to J'onn. He lost some blood, and he won't be fighting for a long while- but he's alive."

Speedy nodded, taking in a shaky breath.

"You like her."

It wasn't a question.

"How's Canary?"

Oliver snorted, rolling his eyes. "She's conscious and talking, against my hopes. She'll be okay. Now, no more changing the subject. Do you?"

"Do I what?"

Oliver rolled his eyes, stealing Speedy's (his) hat and placing it over his messy, sweaty mop of hay. "Right. We'll chat later."

He stood and turned to walked off, but suddenly re-traced his steps. He turned and ruffled up Roy's hair, saying, "Don't touch my hats."

….

….

Artemis led them towards another wooden door. "This wing is older," she explained, reaching for the door. To everyone's surprise, it wasn't locked. "We assassins like to hide things in plain sight," she explained, yet again, and walked inside.

The whole area was older, obviously- dark oaken floors, with weaved, white walls. But there were improvements, too, like metal floor-boards and a small area of iron tiles. Upon that small area was a pedestal, where sat the glowing purple rock.

Wraith eyed Artemis. "Is it really that easy?"

She nodded. "It is that easy."

Pulling Robin and Sparrow with her, Artemis approached the rock. She crouched down to be eye-to-eye with Robin. "Richard, may I borrow your cape?"

The boy's masked eyes opened slightly. "How- you- but- how-"

She chuckled lightly. "I know things. Now, may I?"

Robin nodded, letting her undo the clasp under his chin. Wraith tensed with the girl's fingers so near his little brother's neck. But Artemis made no move to hurt Robin. She turned to Wraith, as if sensing his fear. She smiled gently. "Don't worry. I have no intentions to hurt you or Richard or Blaine or Wallace." She winked at Kid Flash, who turned furious violet shades and turned away.

Using the cape as a glove, Artemis picked up the rock and wrapped it in the fabric. She wound it up, then pulled the flower out of her hair and stuck it in the fabric to pin the make-shift bag shut. Crouching back down to Robin, she had tears in her eyes. "Richard, they will hurt me for this... They will take away all of my memories..." She blinked, then kissed Robin's forehead. Looking back to his face, she smiled weakly. "Use this flower to find me again, Richard. I look forward to meeting you and Blaine as elders."

Robin nodded shakily, slowly whimpering, "Thank you, Ravager," and Artemis stood. She walked over to Wally and raised his visor fearlessly, kissing the corner of his lips. While he turned crimson, she did the same to Wraith. Despite her being younger, Wraith still flushed slightly at the gesture. Artemis turned and kissed Blaine's forehead. "You may be almost my age," she said with a smile as she crouched slightly, "yet you are still innocent, still small, still... pure." A tear trickled down Artemis's cheek, and Blaine shook her head fiercely.

"My daddy made sure I wouldn't ever be innocent."

Artemis's face fell. "My father as well. I'm sorry..."

Blaine suddenly threw her arms around Artemis's neck. The older blonde stood the few inches that she had crouched, wrapping her arms around Blaine's waist to hug her. Wraith hissed slightly, and Artemis set Blaine down. The older's blonde hair now fell into her face, no longer plaited. Her teary irises looked over Blaine and Dick, and she cracked her lips into a smile. "Do not let anything separate you two. Your bond is strong." Standing, Artemis nodded towards the door. "Go now, Terrence. I'll buy you some time."

Terrence pulled Blaine onto his back, and Wally snatched up Dick. They ran out the door. An instant later, Terrence's head poked back into the room. He licked his lips, at a loss for words. Quickly, he mumbled, "Thanks, Ravager."

When they were gone, Artemis broke out into violent sobs. She slid down to the floor, her back on the pedestal. Looking up to the bright lights, she heard footsteps behind her. A tall, skinny woman with black hair keeled down. She pulled her daughter into her arms and spoke soothingly in Vietnamese, "I am proud of you, Artemis... And I will not let them hurt you..."

Artemis, between sobs, replied in English. "I know, Mommy... I know..."

….

….

Cheshire turned the corner and yelped, doing a back-flip to keep from running into the two masked boys. She snarled, gripping her sais tightly. Wraith pulled a bat-a-rang, brandishing it as Robin and Sparrow slid off of their respective 'rides', taking fighting stances.

Suddenly, Batman and Wonder Woman ran around the corner. "Cheshire!" Batman snapped. "These are who I'm looking for."

Cheshire's snarl stayed on her face, but she stood and put her weapons at her sides. "Go. Now," she growled.

Wonder Woman lifted Sparrow into one arm and Robin into the other. Batman gestured silently for Kid Flash and Wraith to follow the woman as she turned and darted from the building.

Suddenly, just as Kid Flash bulleted off, Cheshire drew her sai and placed it at Wraith's throat.

"Stop, Cheshire!" Batman barked.

Cheshire ignored him. "Where is my sister?" she snapped to Wraith, who gulped.

"In the room."

He need not say what room.

Cheshire withdrew and nodded, running off towards the South end.

Batman put his hand on Wraith's shoulder tersely. He made an annoyed, angry, yet quiet grunt that said, _'Are you okay?'_

Wraith nodded, shrugging off the hand. "How long do we have before this place blows?" he asked as the two ran down the halls.

Batman fought the urge to smirk. "So you knew."

"I was trained by the best."

They jumped down the stairs, slowing their descents with the bannister. "Twenty seconds," Batman spoke bluntly as they ran down the main hallway.

"Is that all?" Wraith croaked.

They ran out the door, towards the jungle where they could see the other spandex-clad heroes waiting, when-

**BOOOOOOOOOM!**

Shrapnel and sparks flew, blowing the Dark Knight and the ghost-child forward. Terrence was fine with his uniform on, but Batman, no longer having his gloves, boots, or cape, felt the sparks burning his skin. A bit of shrapnel dug into his back, and he landed on top of Wraith protectively.

The flames died down, and Green Arrow and Captain Marvel ran forward, helping both up.

Wraith turned a frightened face towards the building. "I know they made it out- they had to have..."

Batman said nothing.

….

….

**One minute earlier...**

Jade ran into the room and saw her mother and sister hugging. "We have to go!" she shrieked, dragging both towards the wall. With her sai, she cut a large 'X' in the weaves. They stepped through into a large, indestructible chamber. Artemis slammed the door shut, and the room shook with the explosion from outside

Jade and Artemis both shrieked as their mother grabbed them and held them close. The room grew hot as flames licked it from the outside.

They sat there for several minutes, their bares feet and legs burning on the metal.

Then, the door re-opened. In stepped a blonde man with bright blue eyes. He wore a hockey mask, but even with it on, you could just _feel _his anger and scowl. From behind him stepped a man with a swollen head. It seemed like his brain was exploding from it.

"Psimon," the blonde spoke. "Relieve my daughters of their faults... We cannot have the Master hearing of it."

Psimon nodded and, before the girls' mother could act, he hand both girls next to him, holding their heads with his long claws. His eyes glowed white, and a sudden power filled either girls' minds.

"AHHHHHHH!"

….

….

All of the 'junior members' sat on the jungle floor, looking at their laps and feet and hands- anywhere but up, where all sixteen Leaguers stared them down menacingly.

Jason sat propped up against a tree. Thanks to J'onn, his wound was completely healed- besides the scar and the blood-loss. Barbara held his hand, Terrence held hers, and the chain went on from Blaine to Dick to Wally to Roy. They all looked down.

Suddenly, Batman spoke.

"What you did today was irresponsible, irrevocable, idiotic, and suicide."

"No other 'I'?" Terrence tried to joke. Blaine kicked him. "Ouch!"

Green Arrow stepped forward. "I know that _you _have had training, Roy, but you know better than this."

Roy felt anger boiling. At Ollie, at Dinah, at Ras, at Lex, and- at himself.

Flash, leaning on Arrow, spoke up. "Wally, you've only had your powers for a few weeks. You could have been _killed_, and your parents would never forgive me- not to mention your aunt- and myself."

Batman was breathing unevenly, trying to calm himself. He closed his eyes behind his mask. Then, he turned to Jason. "Don't think that because you got 'injured' I will not be as hard on you, Jason Holmes." The teen winced, as did the other Leaguers. _Give him a break_, Flash thought. _He's still got blood-loss..._

"Jason, you are the oldest and _were supposed to be _the most mature. I am very, _very_ ashamed."

Batman turned to Barbara, who was squirming in her spot. J'onn had healed her leg, too, and the bullet was now in Batman's belt, ready to be sent to the lab. "Barbara Gordon, you are _normally _the level-headed one. I cannot believe that you would agree or assist to this suicide mission.

"Terrence Prince, you, too, should have acted more your age. I am ashamed of all three of you. Especially when you dragged Blaine and Richard into this-"

Dick snapped.

He stood sharply, his face the spitting image of anger (and of Batman). His little eyebrows were furrowed. "They didn't want us to come!" he cried out. "We made them bring us- even Jason was hesitant to let us come... at first."

"_Hesitant_?" Diana asked Canary, who was a bit 'drunk' and 'loopy'. She rolled her eyes.

"Bats... must read 'em the dictionary... to sleep..."

Dick wasn't done there, though. He marched straight up to Batman, seemingly unimpressed with the man's good four feet he had on the child. Dick scowled up at him and exclaimed, "We did good here! Me, Blaine, Terry, Barb, Jase- Roy and Wally, too!" The two red-heads smirked softly.

Blaine stood, coming up next to Dick. Batman tried to not be surprised. "Yeah!" she spoke loudly, crossing her arms over her chest. Dick followed suit. "We did good! We've trained for _months_, and we're uninjured, aren't we? Not as much as we can say for _you _guys-" (Oh yeah, she went there.) "-you're supposed to be the adults-"

"-The experiencedheroes!" Dick piped in.

"-And _you _got your _butts _kidnapped so that _we _had no _choice _but to come and save you!"

Everyone (even Batman by this time) stood, eyes wide, jaws dropped, at the two 'twins'. Blaine locked an arm around Dick's shoulders, and he did the same around her waist. Dick spoke firmly, "We _deserve _to be heroes. We've earned the right- we should have earned your respect today! But apparently not..." His voice died with the last part, his face softening an inch. Then, it firmed. "Basically, we're not gonna stop-"

Roy stood to join the kids. He put a hand on either's shoulder. "So get on board," he snapped.

The others joined, Jason a bit woozy.

Even so, though, he was able to retort to the stunned silence, "Or get out of our way."

Batman's eyes narrowed.

There was silence throughout the forest.

Finally, Flash spoke. "Well, I give 'ya fifty outta' ten point for that monologue."

Arrow shrugged. "Sixty."

Finally, Batman spoke. "You will not be doing this again."

The kids glared, and Jason opened his mouth to speak, but Batman held up a hand. "Unless we order it. Clear?"

All of the kids began to whoop with joy.

Suddenly, a bright white light appeared. In unison, Terrence, Wally, Blaine, and Dick all fell to their knees, screaming, clutching at their temples.

Flash and Batman darted forward, but were flung back by an invisible force-field.

The young heroes' shrieks filled the dense jungle air.

The light pulsated, then died out.

As quickly as it had began, it stopped.

No body moved as the four stood shakily. "Where- where are we?" Terrence asked, blinking.

"Ugh..." Wally moaned. "My head..." He looked down at his clothes, frowning and picking at the symbol. "What the-"

Dick and Blaine gasped together when they saw each others uniforms. "Are we on a mission?" Blaine squealed.

"Wait- how did we get here?"

"Huh?"

"What?"

"Uhm... Batman-"

"Uncle Barry?"

"WHERE ARE WE?"

Arrow, Flash, and Batman all eyed each other. "Psimon."

"Aw man!" Roy groaned. "They don't remember our awesome monologue!"

….

….

Superman and Batman stepped out of the vault. Wonder Woman slammed the ten-ton door shut, locking it tightly. She then took the key-card and turned it to dust in her fist. Smirking at the other two, she walked along side them in the Watchtower's Vault-Hall. "So... that's done-"

"And Hell begins," Batman said, almost in a groan. "Now, I have _five whiny_ vigilantes to take on patrol."

Superman chuckled. "It could be worse-"

"Don't even _joke _about this, Kent."

Superman chuckled as they stepped out of the Vault-Hall. He shut the door and turned, opening his mouth to speak. Suddenly, the intercom came on, and J'onn's voice boomed, _"Superman to the Bridge. I repeat, Superman to the Bridge."_

The man sighed and shrugged, giving a wave to Wonder Woman and Batman. Wonder Woman waved back, while Batman snarled. Superman turned the corner, and Diana turned, too.

Right to Batman.

"Bruce..."

"Diana..."

She sighed, pulling her hair between her fingers. "About Christmas-"

Batman took off his mask, pulling her into his arms. She gasped loudly, tripping into his chest, both hands over his muscular torso. He grinned in his 'I'm-a-bachelor-millionaire' way, and Diana smirked. "Dinner at the Manor?"

"Wouldn't miss it."

**YAY!**

**It's OVER!**

**Oh, you thought ONLY "Becoming Robin" was over?**

**No, Meet the Family, is DOOOOOOOOOOOONE!**

**BUUUUUT, there WILL be sequels with Blaine, Terry, and Jase, just give me a little while. I have a story in mind for Roy, Walls, and Robs, so I wanna work on that. Not to mention my contest entries... Ugh...**

**I know some of you will hate me for ending this, but never fear! THEY WILL RETURN!**

**I already have EVERYTHING planned out to explain WHY Sparrow is not there for YJ if she and Robin are 'partners' and where BG and BH and W are and everything... So... yeah.**

**If you love me and CAN'T WAIT FOR THE SEQUEL (which will be titled "Death of the Bat") then please, do all squirrels and lephruechans a favor, and review.**

**here, I'll even show you where the button it!**

**V**


	21. Death of the Bat Teaser

**Just a preview of "Death of the Bat" to tickle your abdomin.**

_**Slightly **_**one-sided Wally/Blaine, but story WILL be Blaine/Kaldur.**

**I own nothing except Blaine.**

**NOW... read! Pwease?**

**Warnings: non-explicit nudity, SLIGHT language, funny suggestiveness, pervert teenage Wally**

The red-head awoke with a start. He felt his face on _fire_. Like... like it was about to explode! He gripped the couch tightly, wondering what occurrence had caused him to feel like this... Maybe it was Cold! When he had been out with Uncle Ba- um... the Flash, he had been shot with a freeze gun! Only, this time, the ice was more _turquoise_ than blue. That was it! NOW HIS FACE WAS GOING TO EXPLOOOODE!

"Achoo!"

Oh.

Or he had to sneeze.

Wally shook his shaggy hair, trying to pry open his green eyes. He was the only one at Mount Justice at the moment- or so he _thought_. M'gann and Connor were at school, Kaldur was in Atlantis, Artemis was at school- so Dick was, too. Wally was _supposed _to be in school, but Joker decided he would switch over to Central City for a day (don't ask why- Wally just went with the fact that he was _crazy_!) and ended up blowing up Wally's school.

Yeah.

It was a Saturday when it happened, so the high schoolers all had the next week off so that the principles could find an 'adequate place for their _pupils _to have knowledge bestowed upon them' and all that crap.

So... What was that noise he heard?

It sounded like running water.

Getting up, Wally pulled on his ACDC shirt to straighten it out. He had already kicked off his blue Converse, and he was wearing basket-ball shorts- a pair he had stolen from Robin. (That's why they came above his knee- Robin: not tall.)

The ginger zoomed through the Mountain, trying to ascertain where the noise was coming from. He checked the kitchen- "Nope!"- the two public bathrooms- "Nuh-Uh!" "Nope!"- and even every bathroom in the others' rooms- "Nada!" "Zip!" "Zoucho!" "Nothin'!" "Nope!"- except for Robin's.

Leaning his ear against the door, Wally frowned. He heard water running and... singing?

Okay, 1) what was Rob doing out of school? And 2) why did he sound like a girl?

_Please be unlocked... Please be unlocked... Please be unlocked... PLEASE BE UNLOCKED!_

"Yay!" Wally gave a rather girly shriek and opened the door silently.

The voice came out louder, this time.

"_I'm goin' home, gonna load up my shotgun!"_

Wally frowned, crinkling up his nose. Robin listened to country music?

"_Wait by the door, 'light a cigarette-"_

Okay, how did Robin _hit _those _notes_?

Unless it wasn't Robin...

Wally creeped towards the bathroom door. It was opened a crack, and he could just barely feel the hot mist coming out. He peered in and saw clothes on the floor- a heavy black hoodie and black skinny jeans- _Yup, looks like Rob!_- and a pair of stark white Converse.

"_He slap me on the face, an' he shook me like a rag doll- don't that sound like a- real MAN?"_

WOAH!

Rob sounded... sexy?

No- that made him sound gay.

But... he sounded... Good. That's it. Good.

Wally slowly pulled himself into the bathroom. He saw a shadow beyond the darkly tinted shower. _This isn't perverted._

The fifteen-year-old cleared his throat. "Uh... Rob?"

There came a shriek, and the person slipped, falling forward and knocking over the shower poll and curtain. Wally saw a very, _very _slender, very _bare _back and two long, _loooong _white legs. The person looked up between long whitish-blonde bangs and shrieked.

"WALLY!"

"BLAINE?"

Wally turned around, embarrassed that he had just seen his best friend's sister naked- well, he didn't actually see anything besides her lower back... and... legs...

Wally wiped the drool from his face as he scrunched his eyes shut. "Um... Blaine- n-nice to see you-"

"GIVE ME A DAMN TOWEL, WEST!"

Wally groped along the floor and found the towel, then tossed it over his shoulder. After a few moments of trying _not _to imagine that oh-so-attactive a-

NO!

He would _not _think of Blaine like that...

"Okay, West. You can look now."

Wally turned and smiled. Blaine had covered herself up with the fuzzy green towel, but Wally could still see the way the water droplets shimmered over her snow-white shoulders. The towel came down about mid-thigh, and Wally had a hard time averting his eyes from Blaine's now very long and very _bare _and _smooth _legs...

"West, you're drooling, and my eyes are _up_."

Wally blinked harshly, shaking his head. "S-S-Sorry..."

Blaine giggled, putting a graceful hand over her gray-stained lips. Yup. She was _still _goth. Her onyx eyes shined as she tried to hide her smile. Her long blonde hair came down to the small of her back, and it stuck around her face gracefully.

"Um... Wally?"

Wally shook his head again. "Um- yeah. You... need to get dressed. Right-"

"Actually, I don't have any clothes besides those-" she pointed to the pile, using one hand to keep on her towel. "Uh... Yeah, I was just planning to wear a robe and wash them, because I didn't think anyone was... here."

Wally grinned cheekily, rubbing the back of his neck. "Yeah- the Joker kinda' blew up my school."

Blaine cocked a snowy eyebrow, and Wally shrugged.

Awkward silence ensues.

"Um... clothes, Wally?"

He jumped. "Oh! Clothes- right."

He super-speeded into Artemis's room and began to rifle through her drawers.

He accidentally pulled out a neon pink thong and shrieked. Blaine's giggles could be heard from across the hall. Sticking his head out the door, Wally called, "You don't need, like... under- yeah, or anything, right?"

"No!" she called back, still in the bathroom. If Wally craned his neck, he could see her wringing out her hair over the sink. And if he crouched a bit lower...

"WALLY WEST! I WAS TRAINED BY THE BATMAN! KEEP YOUR EYES _UP_!"

Wally flushed red and turned back to the drawers. "Right, right... heh..."

He managed to find some oh-so-short-shorts that he _knew _Artemis only wore for PJ's (oh, Wally...) and a tank-top. He assumed Blaine would wear her hoodie over it.

"Just toss them in," she ordered when he came upon the now-closed door.

Wally did as he was told, no longer trying to be a peeking-Tom.

After a few minutes, the door opened and Blaine, scowling at Wally fiercely, came out with her hair up in a loose bun. Her hoodie came down over the short-shorts so that it looked like she wasn't wearing any pants.

"You're a pervert, you know that?"

Wally smirked and stood, opening his arms wide. Blaine, despite being angry at the speedster, accepted the hug. She leaned into it, letting him embrace her fully. "I've missed you, Wally. And Roy. And Dickie, especially."

Wally nodded. "Missed you too, B." He suddenly pulled back, arms still around Blaine's back. She smirked at him. "What?"

Emerald eyes widened a moment. "You haven't seen D yet?"

She blushed. "Um... No, actually. This was supposed to be a surprise visit, but, well- yeah."

She pulled away, putting her hands on her hips. "Now, _West_, can I get some _decent _pants?"

He rubbed his chin playfully, taking in her white legs. "No, no I actually kinda' like this-"

She lunged, screaming, "WEST!"

Wally took a step back, tripping on a book that Robin had left out next to his bed, and fell supine onto the floor. Blaine had no time to react, so she fell as well, falling on top of Wally. Their legs accidentally twisted up, and Blaine landed with both hands next to Wally's head to land her fall. Sadly, this put her chest near his face.

But neither took it perversely. Wally howled with laughter as the girl he considered a sister- an _attractive _sister- growled at him. He locked his legs around both of hers, making it impossible for Blaine to get up.

The fifteen-year-old girl slapped his chest. "Wallace West, let me _up_!"

Wally grabbed her hands, and the two fought for a moment before Wally rolled over, pinning her down with her hands near her head. He straddled her stomach, grinning. "I _finally _beat you!"

She couldn't help but giggle. "Yeah, when we were kids, I'd always pin _you_."

Wally rolled his eyes. "Not even Jason could beat you-"

"-only Roy could," she finished, chuckling.

Awkward silence ensues.

"West, let me up."

"Actually-"

"WEST!"

She pulled her chest upwards to try and get out of his grasp.

Sadly, just then the door opened.

A high-pitched boy's voice crackled, "WALLY!"

Wally and Blaine both tilted their heads back to see-

Blaine paled (if that were possible). "Dickie! Good to see you!"

**HAHAHAHAHAHA!**

**Poor Blaine- actually, poor Wally when Dickie bird gets done with him...**

**Sigh.**

**Probably gonna come out SOMETIME before school, so don't get your hopes up, kiddos!**


End file.
